Copper - A Suggested Relationship to Alzheimer's Disease

  From researchers at the U of Rochester, when studying aging mice that were fed drinking water (with only low levels of copper) found a four fold increase in copper in brain capillaries and a two-fold decrease in in LRP1 (lipoprotein receptor-related protein 1). LRP1 facilitates the transport of amyloid beta across the blood-brain barrier and into the bloodstream for removal. If the level of LRP1 is reduced then Abeta transport is reduced and its accumulation results in the production of plaques and deposits seen in the brains of patients with AD.
  It might be that as we get older our brains may be more sensitive to to copper in our diet and water.
  Because copper is a vital nutrient to cell function altering it will be a complicated task. Currently there is a study in phase II trials employing PBT2 , a chaperone molecule to escort copper from the brain.
  The fact that copper prevents the pleating of amyloid-beta has been known for many years. But in the lab, at least, copper decelerates the deposition of amyloid- beta in plaques.
Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 2013;E-pub2013 aug 19