Alzheimer’s disease affects millions of people worldwide, and is most pronounced by devastating symptoms of severe memory loss. Symptoms first appear at the age of 65, and two proteins, tau and amyloid beta, are attributed to the progression of the disease. However, the direct link of these proteins to memory losses still remains unclear. Tau proteins are involved in transporting nutrients to brain cells, as well as ridding of waste from these cells. However, in Alzheimer’s disease, tau proteins structurally transform into an oligomeric form which may be toxic to the brain.
Although no cure currently exists for Alzheimer’s disease, advancements in research continue to uncover treatments that may be hopeful in mitigating the associated symptoms. A new study from the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston suggests that even a small dose of immunotherapy may reverse memory problems in Alzheimer’s disease. In a previous study, scientists from UTMB revealed that anti-tau oligomer immunotherapy reduced levels of both tau oligomers and subsequent memory deficits in animal models. In the current study they revealed that anti-tau oligomer immunotherapy also reduced levels of amyloid beta oligomers, suggesting that the harmful nature of amyloid beta in Alzheimer’s disease may be dependent on toxic tau oligomers. Although further research is required to test the validity of this treatment, immunotherapy may be promising in helping sufferers of Alzheimer’s disease worldwide.
References:
Castillo-Carranza, D.L., Guerrero, M.J., Sengupta, U., Hernandez, C., Barret, A.D., Dineley, K., & Kayed, R. (2015) Tau immunotherapy modulates both pathological tau and upstream amyloid pathology in an Alzheimer’s disease mouse model. Journal of Neuroscience, 35(12), 4857-4868.