From the Guidelines
Notch 3 is a marker for vascular dementia.
Vascular Dementia Markers
- The diagnosis of vascular dementia (VaD) involves the presence of significant cerebrovascular pathology or risk factors, assessed clinically or using neuroimaging 1.
- Cerebral autosomal-dominant arteriopathy with subcortical infarcts and leukoencephalopathy is an autosomal-dominant hereditary small-artery vasculopathy caused by mutations in the Notch3 gene on chromosome 19 1.
- This condition is characterized by migraine with aura, strokes, and progressive subcortical dementia, and mood disturbances, with MRI changes showing focal lacunar infarcts and leukoaraiosis 1.
- Diagnosis is confirmed by skin biopsy or detection of a pathogenic Notch3 mutation on direct sequencing 1. The other options, Amyloid Beta, Tau protein, Ubiquitin, and Synuclein, are not mentioned in the context of vascular dementia markers in the provided evidence 1.
From the Research
Vascular Dementia Markers
The following proteins have been studied in relation to vascular dementia:
- Amyloid Beta (Amyloid B): Studies have shown that Amyloid Beta is associated with vascular dementia, particularly in the context of cerebral amyloid angiopathy 2, 3, 4.
- Tau protein: Tau protein has also been linked to vascular dementia, and its combination with Amyloid Beta may aid in the diagnosis of vascular dementia 3, 5.
- Ubiquitin: There is no direct evidence to suggest that Ubiquitin is a marker for vascular dementia 6.
- Synuclein: While Synuclein has been studied in the context of neurodegenerative diseases, its role as a marker for vascular dementia is not well established 4.
- Notch 3: There is no evidence to suggest that Notch 3 is a marker for vascular dementia.
Key Findings
- Plasma Amyloid-β levels have been associated with subclinical markers of vascular disease and poorer memory 2.
- A combination of Amyloid Beta and Tau protein in cerebrospinal fluid can discriminate between patients with stable mild cognitive impairment and those with progressive mild cognitive impairment into Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia 3.
- Vascular-tau associations have been observed in temporal-parietal regions, and these associations are exacerbated in the presence of amyloid 5.