Down syndrome is the most frequent cause of cognitive dysfunction that results
from the triplication of chromosome 21. Along with a number of developmental disabilities
that occur in early childhood, Down syndrome is also associated with age-related
Alzheimer’s disease neuropathology, leading to 50-70% of persons with Down syndrome
showing dementia by 6th to 7th decade of life. Recent evidence has strongly implicated
inflammatory processes in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer’s disease. However, little is
known about the genetic impact of Down syndrome on neuroinflammation. Accordingly,
the central aim of this chapter is to explicate our current knowledge of inflammation in
Alzheimer’s disease and to discern how it may be extrapolated to understand better the
inflammatory processes that affect Down syndrome neuropathology.
Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid, cytokines, dementia, inflammation,
microglia.
