Dr. Dominic D'Agostino studies Alzheimer's disease and related neurological conditions. The brain tissue of an Alzheimer's patient features two abnormalities: beta-amyloid plaques, which disrupt cellular communication, and tau protein tangles, which destroy the brain's transport system and cause cellular death. A new theory suggests that metabolic dysregulation leads to the abnormal folding of beta-amyloid and tau proteins, indicating Alzheimer's pathology results from impaired brain energy metabolism. An ongoing study is investigating the use of ketogenic diets or ketone supplements to enhance brain metabolism as a potential Alzheimer's treatment strategy.

1. The Appearance of Alzheimer's
in the Brain
By Dominic D'Agostino

2. Introduction
• Dr. Dominic D'Agostino studied neuroscience and physiology at the
University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey and currently
serves the University of South Florida as an assistant professor.
There, Dr. Dominic D'Agostino researches therapies for neurological
diseases like Alzheimer’s diseases, as well as symptoms of these
conditions, such as muscle wasting.
The brain tissue of an individual with Alzheimer’s disease features
two distinct abnormalities that immediately draw a doctor's
attention to the condition. The protein clumps of beta-amyloid,
commonly referred to as plaques, have a number of negative effects
on brain cells, notably the disruption of cellular communication.
While the ultimate cause of Alzheimer's is still unknown, some
researchers believe beta-amyloid may be one of the keys.

3. Alzheimer's in the Brain
• Tangles, on the other hand, are the name given to masses of tau
proteins that become knotted together. In a healthy brain, cells rely
on the internal support and transportation provided by a
functioning tau network. For people with Alzheimer’s, however,
these tangles affect and ultimately destroy this transport system.
The loss of this system is one of the prime causes of cellular death
throughout the brain in Alzheimer’s patients. The metabolic theory
of neurodegeneration posits that a dysregulation of energy
metabolism leads to aberrant protein folding and breakdown of
beta-amyloid and tau. The processing of these proteins are
intimately linked to metabolic homeostasis, suggesting that the
Alzheimer's pathology (plaque formation) is a downstream
epiphenomenon of impaired brain energy metabolism. Nutrition
ketosis is a means to enhance brain energy metabolism through the
ketogenic diet or ketone supplementation, and an ongoing study at
the USF Byrd Alzheimer's Institute is investigating this metabolic
therapy as a strategy.