Preservation of cortical histamine H3 receptors in ischemic vascular and mixed dementias

Aim: Histamine H-3 receptor antagonists have been proposed as a novel therapeutic approach for the symptomatic treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, it is unclear whether there is a neurochemical basis for extending their potential use in vascular and mixed dementias. In this study, we measured cortical H-3 receptors in patients with subcortical ischemic vascular dementia (SIVD) and mixed SIVD/AD (MIX). Materials and methods: Radioligand binding assays using [H-3]GSK189254 were used to measure H-3 receptors in the postmortem frontal cortex, anterior cingulate gyrus and hippocampus of a cohort of longitudinally assessed SIVD, MIX and age-matched controls. Results: H-3 receptor levels were unchanged in SIVD and MIX in all areas studied. Furthermore, frontal H-3 receptor densities negatively correlated with predeath assessment of cognition using Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE) scores. Conclusion: Our data suggest that H-3 receptors are preserved in SIVD and MIX, thus supporting further assessments of H-3 antagonists as potential therapeutics in these dementias. (C) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.