A shot to stop Alzheimer's could 'cut the number of cases in half,' scientists claim

November 21, 2018  22:35

An Alzheimer's vaccine may halt the build-up of both kinds of toxic plaques and tangles that 'clog' dementia sufferer's brains, a new study suggests. `

Scientists at the University of Texas, Southwestern, are developing a shot that uses DNA from Alzheimer's proteins to teach the immune system to fight these compounds and keep them from accumulating in the brain. 

Their vaccine is not the first attempt to slow Alzheimer's progression this way, but the UT Southwestern team's dose is delivered in the skin, and does not appear to cause the dangerous brain swelling that other shots have.

The researchers believe that they are closing in on human trials for their preventive shot.

Every 65 seconds, another American develops Alzheimer's, and the number of sufferers is expected to more than triple by 2050. 

In the last several decades, we've begun to discover more of the risk factors for the degenerative brain disease, but there is no cure, no way to prevent Alzheimer's from developing and only minimal treatments for its symptoms. 

Primary targets Alzheimer's therapies include two types of proteins: beta-amyloid  and tau. 

As we age, our biological process start to get at little sloppier. 

So beta-amyloid proteins start getting misfolded into lumpy shapes that stick together and interrupt neural connections.

Similarly, tau proteins, which are stringier in shape, start getting tangled. 

These two spots of neurological messiness are hallmarks of the development of Alzheimer's, so scientists believe that if they can slow or stop these inelegant structures from forming, they might be able to slow - or even stop - dementia, too. 

Dr Roger Rosenberg, founding director of the Alzheimer's Disease Center at University of Texas Southwestern is among those trying to boost the immune system's power to attack these debilitating plaques and tangles. 

The new study, he says, 'is the culmination of a decade of research that has repeatedly demonstrated that this vaccine can effectively and safely target in animal models what we think may cause Alzheimer's disease.

'I believe we're getting close to testing this therapy in people.'

The vaccine contains a DNA coding for a segment of beta-amyloid - which also also reduces tau - in mice modeled to have Alzheimer's disease. 

Its DNA contents act like a training target for the immune system which learns to recognize the two proteins and attack them as they start to build up. 

A similar line of work, undertaken by another institution in the early 2000s, appeared to effectively arm the immune system against the plaques and tangles, but it caused a whole new set of problems, as the immune response it triggered caused dangerous brain swelling. 

The new vaccine seems to activate the immune system, but in a different way that circumvents the swelling, and may be safe for humans, according to the new findings, published in the journal Alzheimer's Research and Therapy. 

Dr Rosenberg's lab demonstrated a similar response in rabbits and monkeys in previous work. 

That helped to put the vaccine he and his team are developing on a shortlist of promising antibody treatments for Alzheimer's disease. 

Source: dailymail.co.uk

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