Matthew Zabel

By Aradhana Verma and Matthew Zabel

This chapter describes the various systems beyond the central nervous system that are associated with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). There is strong evidence to believe that while AD has symptoms of memory and cognitive impairment—undoubtedly domains of the central nervous system—the primary insult that causes this condition may arise systemically. We describe associations with the immune system, gut microbiome, and endocrine abnormalities that may be at play. Our goal is to incorporate a multi-system approach to understand the pathogenesis of AD. Our body does not function as soloed organ systems, and we hypothesize that the mechanisms described herein are similarly contributing to the progression of cognitive impairment in AD.

Part of the book: Alzheimer's Disease

By Eileen Ly, Anu Stephen, Yasmeen Alhomsy, Asal Homayouni, Joshua Fisher, Kayla Sheehan, Prashanth Venkataraman, Quinto Gesiotto, Matthew Habib and Matthew Zabel

In this chapter, the authors will discuss the epidemiology and clinical presentations of amyloidosis. The main body of this chapter will concentrate on treatment options, both FDA-approved and experimental, specific to the various forms of amyloidosis. Since this set of diseases can affect multiple organ systems, we tackle the therapeutic avenues and the current challenges in each system under clinical investigation, including neurological, psychiatric, gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, endocrine, renal and hematologic, in addition to options for palliative treatment for severe symptom management and improved quality of life. Several recent groundbreaking discoveries have opened up the potential for successful treatment of peripheral and central neurological amyloidoses making this an exciting and evolving field.

Part of the book: Amyloid Diseases