Known risk factors in Alzheimer’s disease, obesity and Type 2 diabetes affect more and more elderly people in the United States. New study conducted by a team of researchers under the lead of professor Paresh Dandona of State University of New York shows weight loss after bariatric surgery reduces the manifestation of the expression in genes responsible for Alzheimer’s disease.

After conducting the study on fifteen Type 2 diabetes patients also suffering from obesity, the researchers found amyloid precursor protein (APP) expression reduced in their white blood cells after gastric bypass surgery and significant weight loss. The APP is linked to the proteins that form part of Alzheimer’s symptoms namely plaques in the patient’s brain.

The study shows a significant reduction in APP, more than 20% reduction, in patients that go through bariatric surgery and lose significant amounts of weight. The RNA messenger that is responsible for carrying APP information to the brain was also reduced more than 30% in these patients. These results led the researchers to the conclusion that bariatric surgery followed by a reduction in weight is a preventing factor for Alzheimer’s disease.

Other data from the study, such as the reduction in the presenilin-2 gene which is also related to an increased Alzheimer’s risk, also support these conclusions. However the data from this study is not enough to prove all these changes are occurring in the brain at same levels but if that is the case this is going to be very useful in treating common dementia.