Project Details
Recent clinical studies implicate insulin resistance as an important risk factor for Alzheimer's disease. A very successful diabetes treatment is PPAR-gamma agonism to increase insulin sensitivity. Unfortunately, this class of drug has serious side effects to peripheral organs including the heart. We have discovered that stimulating PPAR-gamma in the brain can reverse cognitive deficits in an Alzheimer's animal model that shows insulin resistance like humans with Alzheimer's. This project will lead to an understanding of how brain PPAR-gamma functions in learning and memory in Alzheimer's disease. This will lead to more selective (i.e., lacking peripheral side effects) cognitive-enhancing agents for Alzheimer's disease patients.