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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Journal of Health and Allied Sciences NU 2022; 12(02): 179-185
DOI: 10.1055/s-0041-1731864
Review Article

3D Models as an Adjunct for Models in Studying Alzheimer's Disease

Ahmed Yaqinuddin
1   Department of Anatomy and Genetic, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Muhammad Faisal Ikram
1   Department of Anatomy and Genetic, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Ayesha Rahman Ambia
1   Department of Anatomy and Genetic, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Raghad Alaujan
1   Department of Anatomy and Genetic, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Junaid Kashir
1   Department of Anatomy and Genetic, College of Medicine, Alfaisal University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
2   Department of Comparative Medicine, King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
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Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the most common causes of dementia. Disease progression is marked by cognitive decline and memory impairment due to neurodegenerative processes in the brain stemming from amyloid-β (Aβ) deposition and formation of neurofibrillary tangles. Pathogenesis in AD is dependent on two main neurological processes: formation of intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein and deposition of extracellular senile Aβ peptides. Given the nature of the disease, the pathology and progression of AD in vivo in humans have been difficult to study in vivo. To this degree, models can help to study the disease pathogenesis, biochemistry, immunological functions, genetics, and potential pharmacotherapy. While animal and two-dimensional (2D) cell culture models have facilitated significant progress in studying the disease, more recent application of novel three-dimensional (3D) culture models has exhibited several advantages. Herein, we describe a brief background of AD, and how current animal, 2D, and 3D models facilitate the study of this disease and associated therapeutics.

Keywords

Alzheimer's disease - animal models - 3D culture - stem cells


Publication History

Article published online:
23 July 2021

© 2021. Nitte (Deemed to be University). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/)

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