New research from Houston Methodist reveals that Alzheimer’s disease might do more than affect memory—it may also disrupt how the body manages energy and increase the risk for heart and metabolic diseases like diabetes, heart attacks, and stroke.
The study, led by Dr. Stephen Wong and published in the Journal of Lipid Research, shows that Alzheimer’s can interfere with communication between nerves and blood vessels in fat tissue. This connection is part of the body’s autonomic nervous system, which controls things like heart rate, digestion, and metabolism without us thinking about it.
The researchers focused on a part of the body that doesn’t usually get much attention in Alzheimer’s research: fat tissue. Using advanced 3D imaging in mouse models, the team was able to see what Alzheimer’s does to the tiny bundles of nerves and blood vessels inside fat.
They found that the disease changes how these nerve and blood vessel networks are structured. These networks are very important for how the body stores and uses energy. When they don’t work properly, it can lead to serious problems like heart disease, high bloo…
One of the main scientists involved, Dr. Li Yang, explained that Alzheimer’s seems to weaken the normal connection between the nervous system and fat. This disruption could be the reason why people with Alzheimer’s often have trouble with blood sugar, blood pressure, and cholesterol—all signs of metabolic disease.
This finding adds to what we know about how Alzheimer’s may affect the entire body, not just the brain. It helps explain why people with Alzheimer’s are more likely to suffer from heart problems, strokes, and other serious health issues in addition to memory loss.
Dr. Wong and his colleagues believe their findings open up new possibilities for treating Alzheimer’s. Instead of focusing only on the brain, doctors might also need to look at how the nervous system is working in the rest of the body. They say future treatments might try to fix or protect the nerve-to-fat communication pathways that are being damaged.
The study is one of the first to show this kind of disruption happening in fat tissue. While more research is needed, this discovery offers hope that managing the body’s overall nervous system health could help improve quality of life for people with Alzheimer’s and possibly prevent other serious illnesses from developing alongside it.
This research is a reminder that Alzheimer’s disease is complex. It’s not just a memory problem—it’s a disease that may harm many systems in the body at the same time. Understanding these connections gives scientists new ideas for how to slow down or manage the disease in a more complete way.
If you care about Alzheimer’s, please read studies about the likely cause of Alzheimer’s disease and new non-drug treatment that could help prevent Alzheimer’s.
For more health information, please see recent studies about diet that may help prevent Alzheimer’s, and results showing some dementia cases could be prevented by changing these 12 things.
The study is published in the Journal of Lipid Research.
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