Excessive lipid droplets in brain cells, particularly microglia, are characteristic of a number of neurodegenerative conditions. Even though cholesterol is vital to cell function, excess cholesterol in cells is toxic, changing behavior for the worse or even killing cells given a large enough excess. A range of other evidence is also supportive of a role for changes in lipid metabolism, including cholesterol metabolism, in the development of conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. Here, researchers report a new finding that implicates the cholestero…
Further Signs that Cholesterol Metabolism is Involved in the Development of Alzheimer's Disease
Excessive lipid droplets in brain cells, particularly microglia, are characteristic of a number of neurodegenerative conditions. Even though cholesterol is vital to cell function, excess cholesterol in cells is toxic, changing behavior for the worse or even killing cells given a large enough excess. A range of other evidence is also supportive of a role for changes in lipid metabolism, including cholesterol metabolism, in the development of conditions such as Alzheimer’s disease. Here, researchers report a new finding that implicates the cholestero…