Graduation Year
2020
Date of Submission
12-2019
Document Type
Campus Only Senior Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Biology
Reader 1
Marion Preest
Reader 2
Hou Ung
Terms of Use & License Information
Rights Information
©2019 Monica Lopez
Abstract
Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of dementia in the United States (Alzheimer’s Association, 2019). Individuals with Down syndrome are at an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Individuals with Down syndrome have an extra or partial copy of chromosome 21. The amyloid precursor protein gene, APP, is theorized to be one of the most common genetic causes of Alzheimer’s disease. Individuals with Down syndrome have an extra copy of the APP gene, which makes individuals with Down syndrome vulnerable to the development of Alzheimer’s disease.
Little is known about the neuropathological pathway and function of APP in Down syndrome and Alzheimer’s disease. I propose the generation of Drosophila melanogaster transgenic lines expressing human wild-type (WT) APP and multiple mutant APP (m-APP) to observe the effect of m-APP expression on neuron atrophy associated with Alzheimer’s disease. This study may provide a better understanding of the pathological pathway of APP and how APP interacts with other genes associated with the development of Alzheimer’s disease. Better understanding APP’s neurological and pathological pathway will assist in uncovering the effect of APP in individuals with Down syndrome who develop Alzheimer’s disease.
Recommended Citation
Lopez, Monica, "Exploration of the neurodegenerative pathway in Down syndrome patients with Alzheimer’s disease" (2020). CMC Senior Theses. 2345.
https://scholarship.claremont.edu/cmc_theses/2345
This thesis is restricted to the Claremont Colleges current faculty, students, and staff.
