Cholinergic therapy

Down s syndrome (DS) carriers develop early-onset AD, motivating the use of cholinergic therapy in this disorder. 

The only clinically available cholinergic therapy to date is an anticholinesterase (tacrine). Studies have shown short-term improvement in some aspects of memory and a delay in decline in some patients. It has been generally assumed that these effects are solely the result of enhancement of muscarinic mechanisms however, this assumption may be unwarranted. Direct muscarinic augmentation produces little measurable cognitive improvement and does not generally reproduce the memory-enhancing effects of anticholinesterases (Bruno et al. 1986 Tariot et al. 1988). 

Nordberg A. PET studies and cholinergic therapy in Alzheimer s disease. Rev Neurol (Paris) 1999 155 53-63. 

Krishnani PS, Sullivan JA, Walter BK, Spiridiqliozzi GA, Doraiswami PM, Krishnan KR. Cholinergic therapy for Down s syndrome. Lancet 1999 353 1064-5. 

Jones RW. Have cholinergic therapies reached their clinical boundary in Alzheimer s disease Int J Geriatr Psychiatry 2003 18(Suppl 1) S7-S13. 

Sabbagh MN, Farlow MR, Relkin N, Beach TG (2006) Do cholinergic therapies have disease-modifying effects in Alzheimer s disease Alzheimer s Dement 2 118-125... 

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