Vanessa J. R. de Paula
Aluna do Programa de Pós-graduação em Ciências, área de concentração Psiquiatria da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo (FMUSP)
Fabiana M. Guimarães
Médica residente do Instituto de Psiquiatria do Hospital das Clínicas (IP-HC) da FMUSP
Orestes V. Forlenza
Professor colaborador médico do Departamento de Psiquiatria da FMUSP

Abstract:

Background: Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) represents an important group of neurodegenerative diseases, affecting temporal and frontal lobes of both hemispheres. FTD can be divided into three clinical subsyndromes: frontal variant, non-fluent progressive aphasia, and semantic dementia. Abnormalities of the metabolism of Tau protein are present in the physiopathology of FTD, and is found in approximately 50% of sporadic cases, supporting the classification of the FTDs into Tau-negative and Tau-positive subtypes, the latter also called “Tauopathies”. Objective: To review the role of Tau in the pathophysiology of FTD. Methods: Review of the literature on FTD published in the Pubmed and Scielo databases since the year 2000, using the keywords: Tau, Tauopathies, frontotemporal dementia. Relevant references previously published, as indicated in the reference list of selected articles, were also included. Results: Through electronic search we identified 12 articles addressing Tauopathies (ten containing original data and seven reviews), and 20 articles (16 with original data and four reviews) on FTDs. Conclusions: There is consistent evidence in the literature to support the notion that Tau protein plays a crucial role in the pathogenesis of FTDs and other neurodegenerative dementias, and the knowledge on these mechanisms is necessary for the development of more specific therapies.

Keywords:Tau protein, tauopathies, frontotemporal dementia.