Title:Mechanistic and Etiological Similarities in Diabetes Mellitus and
Alzheimer’s Disease: Antidiabetic Drugs as Optimistic Therapeutics in
Alzheimer’s Disease
Volume: 22
Issue: 7
Author(s): Subham Das, Anu Kunnath Ramachandran, Debojyoti Halder, Saleem Akbar, Bahar Ahmed and Alex Joseph*
Affiliation:
- Department of Pharmaceutical Chemistry, Manipal College of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Manipal Academy of Higher
Education, Manipal, Karnataka 576104, India
Keywords:
Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, oxidative stress, ApoE4, pathophysiology, antidiabetic.
Abstract:
Background: Diabetes mellitus and Alzheimer’s disease are two common diseases that majorly
affect the elderly population. Patients in both cases are increasing day by day. They are considered
two independent diseases, but recent evidence suggests that they have a lot in common.
Objective: In this review, we focused on the connection between Alzheimer's disease and diabetes and
highlighted the importance of antidiabetic drugs against Alzheimer's disease.
Methods: Common pathways such as obesity, vascular diseases, oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction,
mutation of the ApoE4 gene, and Sirtuin gene were found to manipulate both diseases. Antidiabetic
drugs are found to have promising effects on Alzheimer’s disease, acting by reducing insulin
resistance, neuronal protection, and reducing amyloid-beta plaques. Some anti-diabetic drugs have
shown promising results in vivo and in vitro studies.
Results: No review present focuses on the structural features of the antidiabetic molecules against
Alzheimer’s disease, their crosslinking pathophysiology, the role of natural bioactive molecules, in silico
advancements followed by preclinical and clinical studies, and current advancements. Hence, we
concentrated on the factors mentioned in the objectives.
Conclusion: Alzheimer's disease can be considered a form of 'type-3 diabetes,' and repurposing the
anti-diabetic drug will open up new paths of research in the field of Alzheimer's disease drug discovery.
