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Neuropathologic changes in Alzheimer's disease
Wenk GL.. The Journal of clinical psychiatry, 2003-01-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Alzheimer's disease is characterized by degenerative changes in a variety of neurotransmitter systems. These include alterations in the function of the monoaminergic neural systems that release glutamate, norepinephrine, and serotonin as well as a few neuropeptide-containing systems. Alzheimer's disease is also characterized by degenerative changes in selected brain regions, including the temporal and parietal lobes and restricted regions within the frontal cortex and cingulate gyrus.
Key findings
- These include alterations in the function of the monoaminergic neural systems that release glutamate, norepinephrine, and serotonin as well as a few neuropeptide-containing systems.
- Alzheimer's disease is also characterized by degenerative changes in selected brain regions, including the temporal and parietal lobes and restricted regions within the frontal cortex and cingulate gyrus.
- The degeneration of these systems may underlie specific aspects of the dementia associated with Alzheimer's disease.
- A major problem in Alzheimer's disease research today is that none of the current hypothesized mechanisms are able to explain the cellular and regional distribution pattern that characterizes the neuropathology of Alzheimer's disease.
Why it matters
This paper describes degenerative changes in neurotransmitter systems and selected brain regions in Alzheimer's disease and how these may underlie aspects of dementia. It is a descriptive account and provides no treatment, cure or prevention.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 42/100
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. We have no data on journal's citation record, so that was left out: it earned 40 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 42 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (The Journal of clinical psychiatry) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| 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 | 1 / 5 | 2003 — older than 20 years, still counted |
| 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 | 6 / 7 | Cited 548 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 4 / 5 | 21.9 citations a year over 25 year(s) since 2003 |
| Impact for its field and year | 3 / 6 | Cited 3.6× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 29 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Gary L. Wenk: h-index 64 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | University of Arizona: institution h-index 1,336 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 1 institution(s) in 1 country — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 12934968) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 40 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 40 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 42 out of 100. |
| Total | 42 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
May need a subscription OpenAlex found no free copy of the full text (checked 6 Feb 1020), so the publisher may charge for it. The PubMed abstract is free.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. This record has no DOI, so the citation leaves it out. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Wenk, G. L. (2003). Neuropathologic changes in Alzheimer's disease. The Journal of clinical psychiatry.
Vancouver
Wenk GL. Neuropathologic changes in Alzheimer's disease. The Journal of clinical psychiatry. 2003. PMID: 12934968.
BibTeX
@article{wenk2003-12934968,
author = {Wenk, G. L.},
title = {{Neuropathologic changes in Alzheimer's disease}},
journal = {The Journal of clinical psychiatry},
year = {2003},
pmid = {12934968}
}
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