June is Alzheimer’s Disease and Brain Awareness Month, a time to raise awareness about Alzheimer’s disease and promote brain health. Chromosome 21 plays a key role in the relationship between Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease, as it carries a gene that produces one of the key proteins involved with changes in the brain caused by Alzheimer’s disease.
The Connection Between Alzheimer’s Disease and Down Syndrome
Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial third copy of chromosome 21. Typically, people have two copies of each chromosome. Chromosome 21 plays a key role in the relationship between Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease as it carries a gene that produces one of the key proteins involved with changes in the brain caused by Alzheimer’s. Additionally, scientists have located several genes on chromosome 21 that are involved in the aging process and that contribute to the increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. It is this unique property of chromosome 21 that makes the disease a more acute concern for people with Down syndrome than those with other forms of intellectual disability.
For more information check out NDSS’ free Alzheimer’s Disease and Down Syndrome Guidebook.