Heat shock protein 70, encoded by the HSPA1A gene in humans, is a key component of the machinery that protects neuronal cells from various stress conditions and whose production significantly declines during the course of aging and as a result of several neurodegenerative diseases.
These data support the hypothesis that overexpression of hsp70i plays an important role in enhancing the survival of neuronal cells following stress and suggests that the induction of a stress response in the CNS may provide an alternative form of treatment for neurodegenerative diseases.
Increased hsx70 mRNA was found in frontal cortex white matter in Alzheimer's disease and in a mixed group of other neurodegenerative disorders.No changes occurred in cerebellum.