Do you have any idea about the root cause of Alzheimer's disease? Last week, Harvard University researchers published a study, hinting they may have found the root of Alzheimer's disease by focusing their latest theory on Amyloid Beta proteins.
The New Alzheimer's Disease Research
On the research published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, scientists found Alzheimer's disease may stem from the brain when it fights infections. Researchers believed that the so-called amyloid beta protein had played a key role in causing Alzheimer's by building up plaque in the brain, which destroyed its ability to make connections and resulted to memory loss, Time notes.
"Neurodegeneration in Alzheimer's disease has been thought to be caused by the abnormal behavior of A-beta molecules, which are known to gather into tough fibril-like structures called amyloid plaques within patients' brains," MassGeneral Institute for Neurodegenerative Disease (MGH-MIND) Genetics and Aging Research Unit's and study author Dr. Robert Moir said, as per Science Daily. "This widely held view has guided therapeutic strategies and drug development for more than 30 years, but our findings suggest that this view is incomplete."
Amyloid Beta Proteins Are The 'Bad Guys' In Alzheimer's Disease
Researchers also noted the immune system may play an essential role in the development of Alzheimer's disease, a condition that gradually steals people of their memory and can also be fatal. According to USA Today, the beta amyloid proteins have long been deemed as a "bad actor" in Alzheimer's disease.
Getting rid of amyloid, however, could be dangerous. But approaches that boost the immune system could be safer and more effective. Study authors Rudy Tanzi and Robert Moir, both of Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital said Alzheimer's disease could be triggered by a normal immune response gone awry, in response to bacteria or other pathogens.
"It's potentially risky to be removing amyloid without considering the importance of its normal function," University of Technology Sydney and the Gavan Institute of Medical Research Alzheimer's expert professor Bryce Vissel said. "Beta amyloid must have an important function because it has been conserved in evolution for 400 million years."
New Alzheimer's Study Needs More Investigation
The latest research on Alzheimer's disease is definitely adding new ideas and creating a lot of interest in the field of Alzheimer's study. But University of Wollongong professor Brett Garner, who is currently finding ways to clear beta amyloid from the brain to treat Alzheimer's disease, said the proof that beta amyloid was the "bad guy" in Alzheimer's disease was much stronger compared to the theory that its antimicrobial function could be helpful.
Garner stressed further investigations are needed to support the theory that bacteria could trigger a rise in beta amyloid productions. Vissel also echoed Garner's thought, saying the reasonable hypothesis of amyloid as an antimicrobial agent in the normal brain should be studied further, ABC reports.
What do you think about the latest Alzheimer's disease study? Sound off below and follow Parent Herald for more news and updates.
