R-α-lipoic acid as a potent agent of mitochondrial protection in alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a chronic neurodegenerative condition that gradually reduces a patient’s learning ability, memory, language ability, communication skills, and high-level cognition. Its incidence begins in the parahippocampal formation (i.e., the entorhinal cortex) and pathologically spreads into the hippocampal region (i.e., the dentate gyrus and CA1/3) and eventually into the cortex and beyond (Castellani, Rolston, and Smith 2010). Clinical symptoms of AD begin as a mild dementia and progress until the patient is unable to care for him/herself; even at the earliest clinical stages, the pathological deterioration of the affected brain regions is likely considerably underway. It is therefore crucial that we recognize and attenuate early risk factors for AD before symptoms become clinically manifest.