A treatment that
could neutralise the harmful protein particles that cause Alzheimer's disease has been developed in the US.
Researchers at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in New York
explained a process that involves designing antibodies could target the
Alzheimer's protein and prevent it from leading to the onset of the condition.
The study, published in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of
Sciences, utilised the same molecular interactions that result in the
Alzheimer's proteins sticking together and forming the toxic particles that are
associated with the disease.
"By binding to specific portions of the toxic protein, we could test
hypotheses about how to prevent or reverse cellular toxicity linked to
Alzheimer's disease," explained lead researcher Peter Tessier, assistant
professor of chemical and biological engineering at the RPI.
According to the Brain Research Trust,
approximately 700,000 people in the UK suffer from Alzheimer's disease,
including about one in 14 people aged over 65 and a sixth of over-80s.
© Adfero Ltd
Alzheimer's treatment news : 13 December 2011
