Researchers have observed in real time the evolution of dementia thanks to living brain cells, thus offering an unprecedented look at the mechanisms of the disease and opening up new perspectives for the understanding of neurodegenerative disorders.
TL; Dr
- Discovery: Unpublished observation of dementia on living human fabric.
- Beta amyloid protein identified as a key destructive of brain connections.
- New hope to more effectively test anti-alzheimer’s treatments.
A remarkable advance in research on Alzheimer’s
For the first time, a team of researchers led by the University of Edinburgh has managed to directly observe the mechanisms of the dementia Using living human brain fabric. This feat, reported by The Guardianupsets traditional methods, so far limited to animal models or artificial cellular cultures. Thanks to samples taken from patients with brain tumors Royal Infirmary of Edinburghthe team was able to examine in real time how a toxic form of the protein beta amyloidassociated with Alzheimer’s disease, alters the essential connections between neurons.
Beta amyloid: a fragile balance with heavy consequences
Researchers have found that even a slight variation in the natural quantity ofbeta amyloid may be enough to disrupt neuronal operation. The brain does not try to repair this damage: an imbalance, whether up or down, compromises communication between cells and accelerates the appearance of symptoms. This protein, when it accumulates in the form of plates, literally prevents neurons from communicating and promotes inflammation – so many devastating processes involved in the progression of Alzheimer’s.
Several elements explain the importance of this discovery:
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- Direct selection living human tissues to observe real reactions.
- New tracks To quickly test the potential efficiency of treatments.
- Precise targeting Synaps, key points in maintaining our cognitive functions.
A new therapeutic horizon?
For the professor Tara Spires-Jonesresponsible for UK Dementia Research Institutethis innovation finally opens the way to a finer evaluation of drugs capable of preventing the loss of synapses. These connections play a crucial role in our memory and our intellectual capacities: their degradation is today considered one of the most reliable early markers of the disease.
Dementia: a societal challenge that increases in the United States
With more than six million Americans affected by the Alzheimer’s diseasewhose number could double in the next twenty years, the health challenge is immense across the Atlantic. The persistent confusion between normal aging and the beginning of dementia still too often deals with diagnostics and management. However, each advance – like that of the Scottish Center – nourishes hope: allowing patients to keep dignity and autonomy longer remains the course that an entire international scientific community is set today.
