14 DAY TRIAL // A wide range of new treatment options may soon become available for people suffering from Alzheimer's disease, thanks to a new investigation conducted in the United Kingdom. Researchers finally managed to figure out the actions of a protein that has long since been linked with the condition.
The toxic protein, called amyloid, has been determined to be the key factor in triggering a chain of reactions and events in the human body that eventually leads to the development of Alzheimer's.
Experts at the University of Bristol have taken a closer look at this reactions – and at the role amyloid plays in them – and managed to create a full map of what's going on inside the brains of those affected.
The investigation was partially funded by Alzheimer's Research UK. Details of the work were published in the latest issue of the esteemed journal Nature Neuroscience. Scientists have known about what the amyloid protein does in the brain since the 1980s.
This made the molecule the target of countless studies, but thus far progress was only made at a snail's pace. What the Bristol group found was that the troublesome molecule also changes the behavior of other proteins, that are found inside nerve cells called neurons.
Eventually, once amyloid does its job, neurons become unable to function properly, and shut down. Dementia then sets in, mostly in the form of Alzheimer's disease, says study overseer, professor Kei Cho. PhD student Daniel Whitcomb was the leader of the investigation.
“We have discovered a critical chain of events, triggered by amyloid, which damages nerve cells. We found that the toxic amyloid protein affects the behavior of other proteins in the brain, causing them to malfunction,” Cho explains.
“This finding could help to explain the memory deficit that has such a profound effect on people with Alzheimer's,” the expert goes on to say.
“ Each of these newly linked proteins provide important clues for treatment development – if we can disrupt this fateful chain of events in the brain, we might be able to protect against Alzheimer's disease,” he adds.
“To develop new treatments for Alzheimer's and other dementias, we must invest in research now. Over 4000 people in Bristol alone have dementia, a number forecast to grow as our population ages,” adds the Head of Research at Alzheimer's Research UK, Dr Simon Ridley.
He goes on to emphasize the importance of conducting more research into understanding how neurons function, how proteins interact, and what processes go wrong before diseases like Alzheimer's set in.
Over the next few decades, forms of dementia such as this one will become increasingly common, putting a tremendous strain on national healthcare budgets.