Common Anesthetic May Induce Cell Death, Generation Of Alzheimer's-Associated Protein

A new study has found how one of the most commonly used anesthetics may produce Alzheimer's-like changes in the brain. Previous studies have shown that applying the anesthetic isoflurane to cultured neural cells can lead to generation of amyloid-beta protein -- the key component of senile plaques seen in the brains of Alzheimer's patients -- and to the cell-death process known as apoptosis. In the Feb. 7 Journal of Neuroscience, researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) and colleagues describe how isoflurane may set off a process in which A-beta generation and apoptosis interact with and magnify each other

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