Low plasma epinephrine in elderly female subjects of dementia of Alzheimertype

One of the robust features of brain pathologies of dementia of Alzheimer ty pe (DAT) is the impairment of the hippocampus, especially the cholinergic s ystem. Several animal studies have suggested that the cholinergic system in the hippocampus is involved in the control of the plasma level of catechol amines and glucose. The stimulation of the hippocampal cholinergic system h as resulted in the elevation of plasma catecholamines and glucose in rats. in the present study, we measured the plasma level of epinephrine, norepine phrine, dopamine, glucose, and insulin during a fasting state in the mornin g in hospitalized DAT (n = 66), vascular dementia (VD) (n = 28), or non-dem ented (ND) (n = 21) females (mean age DAT = 82.49 +/- 4.98, VD = 82.86 +/- 5.86, ND = 82.95 +/- 7.77, respectively). Statistical analysis showed that the plasma level of epinephrine during a fasting state in DAT subjects was significantly lower than that of ND subjects; however, in VD subjects the l evel of epinephrine was not different from that of ND subjects. Other value s did not differ significantly among the groups. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.