The DOI matches its Crossref record; 201 of the 203 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Cholesterol Dysmetabolism in Alzheimer’s Disease: A Starring Role for Astrocytes?
Open accessAbstract
In recent decades, the impairment of cholesterol metabolism in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been intensively investigated, and it has been recognized to affect amyloid β (Aβ) production and clearance, tau phosphorylation, neuroinflammation and degeneration. In particular, the key role of cholesterol oxidation products, named oxysterols, has emerged. Brain cholesterol metabolism is independent from that of peripheral tissues and it must be preserved in order to guarantee cerebral functions. Among the cells that help maintain brain cholesterol homeostasis, astrocytes play a starring role since they deliver de novo synthesized cholesterol to neurons. In addition, other physiological roles of astrocytes are to modulate synaptic transmission and plasticity and support neurons providing energy. In the AD brain, astrocytes undergo significant morphological and functional changes that contribute to AD onset and development. However, the extent of this contribution and the role played by oxysterols are still unclear. Here we review the current understanding of the physiological role exerted by astrocytes in the brain and their contribution to AD pathogenesis. In particular, we focus on the impact of cholesterol dysmetabolism on astrocyte functions suggesting new potential approaches to develop therapeutic strategies aimed at counteracting AD development.
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![Figure 3 The morphological change induced by oxysterols in mouse primary astrocytes. Control astrocytes (a) and astrocytes treated with an oxysterol mixture representative of oxysterols present in late AD brains (b) ([67], unpublished images). Scale bar: 100 µm.](/paper-figures/cc499747b51748d7b77ea319d0e24afe/cholesterol-dysmetabolism-in-alzheimers-disease-a-starring-role-for-astrocytes-figure-3.jpg)
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“As astrocytes are important for cholesterol synthesis in brain and are a major source of ApoE-containing lipoprotein particles central to cholesterol transport between astrocytes, neurons, and other cells (17)”
From Regulation of astrocyte lipid metabolism and ApoE secretion by the microglial oxysterol, 25-hydroxycholesterol (2023) · cites this paper as [17]
In the citing paper
“In the brain most cholesterol is produced de novo by astrocytes, and then transported to neurons and other cells by combining with ApoE, mainly synthesized by astrocytes, to form lipoproteins that are secreted through the ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters [9,10].”
From ApoE3 vs. ApoE4 Astrocytes: A Detailed Analysis Provides New Insights into Differences in Cholesterol Homeostasis (2022) · cites this paper as [10]
In the citing paper
“it is recognized that HMGCR is negatively regulated by side-chain oxidized oxysterols such as 25-OHC and 27-OHC [10]”
From ApoE3 vs. ApoE4 Astrocytes: A Detailed Analysis Provides New Insights into Differences in Cholesterol Homeostasis (2022) · cites this paper as [10]
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Cashikar, A. G., Toral-Rios, D., Timm, D., Romero, J., Strickland, M., Long, J. M., Han, X., Holtzman, D. M., & Paul, S. M. (2023) · Journal of Lipid Research · doi:10.1016/j.jlr.2023.100350 · Cited by 72
He, S., Xu, Z., & Han, X. (2025) · Molecular Neurodegeneration · doi:10.1186/s13024-025-00803-6 · Cited by 62
Functions of Stress-Induced Lipid Droplets in the Nervous System
Islimye, E., Girard, V., & Gould, A. P. (2022) · Frontiers in Cell and Developmental Biology · doi:10.3389/fcell.2022.863907 · Cited by 57
The translational potential of cholesterol-based therapies for neurological disease
Valenza, M., Birolini, G., & Cattaneo, E. F. (2023) · Nature Reviews Neurology · doi:10.1038/s41582-023-00864-5 · Cited by 48
Borràs, C., Mercer, A., Sirisi, S., Alcolea, D., Escolà-Gil, J. C., Blanco-Vaca, F., & Tondo, M. (2022) · International Journal of Molecular Sciences · doi:10.3390/ijms23169356 · Cited by 39
Metadata
- Authors
- Staurenghi, E., Giannelli, S., Testa, G., Sottero, B., Leonarduzzi, G., & Gamba, P.
- Affiliations
- University of Turin (IT)
- Corresponding author
- Gamba, Paola
- Venue
- Antioxidants
- Publisher
- MDPI AG
- Published
- 2021-11-26
- Volume
- 10
- Issue
- 12
- Pages
- 1890
- ISSN
- 2076-3921 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC8750262
- OpenAlex
- W3215444088
- Cited by
- 44
- References
- 203
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 7
- FWCI
- 0.97
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- gold
- doi.org
- Licence
- Locations
- Antioxidants (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed Central (publishedVersion, cc-by)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Institutional Research Information System University of Turin (University of Turin) (submittedVersion, other-oa)
- DOAJ (DOAJ: Directory of Open Access Journals) (submittedVersion, cc-by-sa)
- Funders
- Università degli Studi di Torino
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
- Life Sciences › Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology › Biochemistry › Cholesterol and Lipid Metabolism
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Neurology › Neuroinflammation and Neurodegeneration Mechanisms
- Keywords
- Alzheimer's disease, cholesterol metabolism, astrocytes, oxysterols, cholesterol homeostasis, amyloid-beta, tau phosphorylation, neuroinflammation, astrocyte-neuron interaction, synaptic transmission, treatment options
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