Pathological Processes in the CNS and the Rest of the Body Essay

Pathological Processes in the CNS and the Rest of the Body - Essay Example Abnormal insulin signalling is not only involved at the glucose level but also at numerous degenerative processes. Another common feature of these two diseases is that their prevalence increases as age advances (Abbas, et al., 2009). This paper will review the common inflammatory and pathological processes in the CNS and the rest of the body. Alzheimer’s disease is the most common form of dementia among older people. It is associated with the loss of cognitive functions like thinking, remembering and reasoning to an extent where it interferes with the patient’s day to day functioning (Russell, et al., 2007). Most patients diagnosed with Alzheimer disease are over 65 years old although the Alzheimer process can start earlier. In 2010, there were 27 million people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. It is projected that by the year 2050, 1 in 85 people globally will be suffering from Alzheimer’s disease (Holscher, 2011). Research has associated the disease with plaques and tangles in the brain. Alzheimer’s disease is characterized by loss of synapses and neurons in the cerebral cortex and some areas of the subcortical regions. This leads to the loss in gross atrophy of the affected parts of the brain (Irwin, 2010). In Alzheimer’s disease, an unknown protein causes amyloid precursor protein to be divided into smaller fragments by enzymes in a process called proteolysis. One of these fragments becomes fibrils of beta-amyloid that form deposits in dense formations referred to as senile plaques. A protein called tau stabilizes microtubules. In Alzheimer’s disease, tau undergoes chemical changes and begins to pair with other threads that create neurofibrillary and disintegrates the neuron transport system (Thompson, et al., 2007). Type 2 diabetes is the most common form of diabetes. Unlike type 1 diabetes, the bodies of type 2 diabetes patients make insulin, but either the body does not use the insulin well or the pancreas does not make enough insulin.  Ã‚