A circuit view of deep brain stimulation in Alzheimer’s disease and the possible mechanisms

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by chronic progressive cognitive deterioration frequently accompanied by psychopathological symptoms, including changes in personality and social isolation, which severely reduce quality of life. Currently, no viable therapies or present-day drugs developed for the treatment of AD symptoms are able to slow or reverse AD progression or prevent the advance of neurodegeneration. As such, non-drug alternatives are currently being tested, including deep brain stimulation (DBS). DBS is an established therapy for several neurological and psychiatric indications, such as movement disorders. Studies assessing DBS for other disorders have also found improvements in cognitive function, providing the impetus for clinical trials on DBS for AD. Targets of DBS in AD clinical trials and animal model studies include the fornix, entorhinal cortex (EC), nucleus basalis of Meynert (NBM), and vertical limb of diagonal band (VDB). However, there is still no comprehensive theory explaining the effects of DBS on AD symptoms or a consensus on which targets provide optimal benefits. This article reviews the anatomy of memory circuits related to AD, as well as studies on DBS rescue of AD in these circuits and the possible therapeutic mechanisms.