Abstract
Previously, we reported protease changes in cerebral tissues, as well as in serum, of patients with Alzheimer-type dementia. In the present study, we investigated enzymatic activities in their cerebrospinal fluid. In the Alzheimer patients the activities of dipeptidyl peptidase III (DPP-III), DPP-IV, and cathepsin B were significantly increased when compared with those of the control subjects. In vascular dementia patients the activities of Leu-AP and cathepsin B were increased but the activity of DPP-III was decreased. These results, as well as those of a multivariate study on these enzymatic changes, suggest the independency of the cerebral changes in the Alzheimer patients from those in vascular dementia. The results may also be of use for clinical diagnoses of these pathologic states.
