Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease
A neurological disease that affects memory and behaviour. It is characterized by beta-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. There is no known cause but genetics and lifestyle are thought to play a role. begins deep in the brain with a set of structures known as the limbic system Limbic system
A group of brain structures that are responsible for memory and emotion.. As cholinergic Cholinergic
Relating to cholinergic system neurons become lost or damaged, pathways to and from the limbic system begin to shut down. The limbic system is important for memory Memory
The ability to process information that requires attention, storage, and retrieval., behaviour and emotions. Two important limbic structures affected by the disease are the hippocampus Hippocampus
A sea-horse shaped structure buried deep within the brain that is responsible for learning and memory. and the amygdala. The hippocampus is a "sea-horse" shaped structure that is involved with both short term memory Short term memory
The term short term memory is used to describe the ability to remember events and experiences that occurred only a short while ago, perhaps a few hours or even minutes earlier. Short term memory stores a limited amount of information in ones mind for only a temporary period. and long term memory Long term memory
Long term memory is used to describe the ability to remember events and experiences from many years ago - memories that last for days to years. It is broken down into three components: semantic, procedural and episodic.. The amygdala is responsible for the experience and expression of emotions. This explains why memory loss and personality changes are some of the earlier signs of Alzheimer's disease.

As the disease progresses, pathways leading to the outer surfaces of the brain become affected. The outer surfaces of the brain are known as the cortex Cortex
The outer surface of the brain.. These outer surfaces are responsible for many different functions such as language, reasoning, orientation, personality and sensory Sensory
Relating to one of the five senses - sight, hearing, touch, taste, smell. information.