Wilma Wasco and Rudolph Tanzi bring together the best and latest thinking by leading scientists on the etiologic and pathogenic events responsible for the onset of Alzheimer"s disease and related dementias. In presenting the various mechanisms and multifaceted approaches currently being employed, the distinguished contributors review such critical factors as apoptosis, energy metabolism, excitotoxicity and calcium-mediated cell death, free radicals, electrophysiological abnormalities, environmental toxins, degeneration of neural networks, and modification of the cytoskeleton. They also examine mechanisms by which ischemia and hypoxia result in dementia. The book provides critical insights into the necessary direction of future investigations of dementia.