Investigating the Relationship between Environmental Lead Exposures and the Onset of Alzheimer's Disease Pathologies

Simple item page
dc.contributor.advisorDeWitt, Jamie C.en_US
dc.contributor.authorJohnson, Dakota, Cen_US
dc.contributor.departmentBiologyen_US
dc.date.accessioned2014-08-06T20:21:29Z
dc.date.available2017-02-07T22:22:34Z
dc.date.issued2014en_US
dc.description.abstractIt is been estimated that nearly 5 million Americans suffer from Alzheimer's Disease (AD), making finding its cause one of medicine's top priorities. It has long been known that genetics plays a major role in the development of Alzheimer's Disease, but this does not fully explain why or when the disease manifests itself. Alzheimer's is likely not a single-origin disease, but rather a disease that arises from a combination of both genetic and environmental factors that occur in the "right mix" at the "right time" to produce a phenotype indicative of AD. A major component of Alzheimer's is the plaques of amyloid-_ protein that form in the brains of its victims. One of the cells in the brain that has been shown to control the levels of amyloid-_ is the microglia. Studies show that these microglia experience a "critical window" of heightened susceptibility to environmental contaminants early in development from post-natal day (PND) 5-15. In this study, 3x-Tg-AD mice were dosed during this critical window with a proven neurotoxicant, lead acetate, in the form of drinking water. The levels and states of microglia were observed and compared to the levels of control mice, and the levels of amyloid-_ were tested using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). This study hoped to uncover the relationship between microglia and amyloid-_ levels as well as determine whether introduction of an environmental toxicant during a period of heightened susceptibility could exacerbate the onset of AD pathologies later in life.en_US
dc.format.extent26 p.en_US
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/10342/4458
dc.subjectAlzheimer's diseaseen_US
dc.subjectMicrogliaen_US
dc.subjectAmyloidsen_US
dc.subjectAmyloid betaen_US
dc.subjectNeurodegenerationen_US
dc.subjectCritical windowsen_US
dc.subjectAmyloid-β
dc.titleInvestigating the Relationship between Environmental Lead Exposures and the Onset of Alzheimer's Disease Pathologiesen_US
dc.typeUndergraduate Thesisen_US

Files

Original bundle
Now showing 1 - 1 of 1
Thumbnail Image
Name:
Johnson_Dakota.pdf
Size:
567.67 KB
Format:
Adobe Portable Document Format
Description:
Download

Collections

Honors College
Biology