Aquaporin Expression in the Brains of Patients With or Without Cerebral Amyloid Angiopathy

Aquaporins have recently been identified as protein channels involved in water transport. These channels may play a role in the edema formation and alterations in microvascular function observed in Alzheimer disease (AD) and cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA). We investigated the expression of aquaporin 1 (AQP1) and aquaporin 4 (AQP4) in 24 human autopsy brains consisting of 18 with AD and varying degrees of CAA and 6 with no pathologic abnormalities using immunohistochemistry. In cases of AD and CAA, there was enhanced AQP4 expression compared with the age- and sex-matched controls. Aquaporin 4 immunoreactivity was prominent at the cerebrospinal fluid and brain interfaces, including subpial, subependymal, pericapillary, and periarteriolar spaces. Aquaporin 1 expression in AD and CAA cases was not different from that in age- and sex-matched controls. Double labeling studies demonstrated that both AQP1 and 4 were localized to astrocytes. Both enhanced AQP4 expression and its unique staining pattern suggest that these proteins may be important in the impaired water transport observed in AD and CAA.