Statins’ Effects on Alzheimer’s Disease

Abstract

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has brought about heavy economic and healthy burden worldwide. There is no effective therapy to prevent or delay the progression of AD. Statins are suggested as the alternative therapy for AD, although the positive effects of statins on AD are still full of controversy. Therefore, it is necessary to define sensitive AD population who would benefit from statin therapy and a preferable therapeutic regimen on statins to avoid detrimental effects on cognition. We summarized the pathogenesis of AD, especially those related to statins. With emerging clinical evidence, updated data on the correlation between statins and AD development are clarified in chronological order. We also retrieved the underlying mechanisms for beneficial and detrimental effects of statins on AD development. Then we discussed the factors that might affect the efficacy of statins from statin use (types, dosages, and therapy duration) to the sensitive population (sex, age, genetic factors, and comorbidities). Finally, we elaborated on the limitations of the current studies and the implications for the future research to guide the appropriate statin therapy in clinic.