Home › Research › Prevention and risk
Alterations in cholesterol metabolism as a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's disease: Potential novel targets for treatment
Loera-Valencia R, Goikolea J, Parrado-Fernandez C, Merino-Serrais P, Maioli S.. The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology, 2019-03-13
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia and it is characterized by the deposition of amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques and neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. However, the complete pathogenesis of the disease is still unknown. High level of serum cholesterol has been found to positively correlate with an increased risk of dementia and some studies have reported a decreased prevalence of AD in patients taking cholesterol-lowering drugs. Years of research have shown a strong correlation between blood hypercholesterolemia and AD, however cholesterol is not able to cross the Blood Brain Barrier (BBB) into the brain. Cholesterol lowering therapies have shown mixed results in cognitive performance in AD patients, raising questions of whether brain cholesterol metabolism in the brain should be studied separately from peripheral cholesterol metabolism and what their relationship is. Unlike cholesterol, oxidized cholesterol metabolites known as oxysterols are able to cross the BBB from the circulation into the brain and vice-versa. The main oxysterols present in the circulation are 24S-hydroxycholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol. These oxysterols and their catalysing enzymes have been found to be altered in AD brains and there is evidence indicating their influence in the progression of the disease. This review gives a broad perspective on the relationship between hypercholesterolemia and AD, cholesterol lowering therapies for AD patients and the role of oxysterols in pathological and non-pathological conditions. Also, we propose cholesterol metabolites as valuable targets for prevention and alternative AD treatments.
Key findings
- High level of serum cholesterol has been found to positively correlate with an increased risk of dementia and some studies have reported a decreased prevalence of AD in patients taking cholesterol-lowering drugs.
- Cholesterol lowering therapies have shown mixed results in cognitive performance in AD patients, raising questions of whether brain cholesterol metabolism in the brain should be studied separately from peripheral cholesterol metabolism and what their relationship is.
Why it matters
This review describes links between cholesterol metabolism and Alzheimer's disease, noting that cholesterol-lowering therapies have shown mixed results on cognitive performance in patients. It suggests that brain cholesterol metabolism and oxysterols may be potential targets for treatment, but no treatment is tested here.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Prevention →
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology: journal h-index 189 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 2 / 5 | 2019 — within 10 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 5 / 7 | Cited 230 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 25.6 citations a year over 9 year(s) since 2019 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 15.2× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 7 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 72 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Silvia Maioli: h-index 21 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Karolinska Institutet: institution h-index 1,477 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 30878503) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2019.03.003
- PubMed: 30878503
- Original source →
- Free full text: The Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Loera-Valencia, R., Goikolea, J., Parrado-Fernandez, C., Merino-Serrais, P., & Maioli, S. (2019). Alterations in cholesterol metabolism as a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's disease: Potential novel targets for treatment. The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsbmb.2019.03.003
Vancouver
Loera-Valencia R, Goikolea J, Parrado-Fernandez C, Merino-Serrais P, Maioli S. Alterations in cholesterol metabolism as a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's disease: Potential novel targets for treatment. The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology. 2019. doi:10.1016/j.jsbmb.2019.03.003. PMID: 30878503.
BibTeX
@article{loeravalencia2019-30878503,
author = {Loera-Valencia, R. and Goikolea, J. and Parrado-Fernandez, C. and Merino-Serrais, P. and Maioli, S.},
title = {{Alterations in cholesterol metabolism as a risk factor for developing Alzheimer's disease: Potential novel targets for treatment}},
journal = {The Journal of steroid biochemistry and molecular biology},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1016/j.jsbmb.2019.03.003},
pmid = {30878503},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsbmb.2019.03.003}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here. Showing 12 of 18.
Later studies that cite this one
7 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references.