Alzheimer's Zombie-like Cells Cure
A
type of cellular stress that is linked to both cancer and aging has now
also been found to be connected to Alzheimer's disease. Some researchers recently reported this discovery in the
scientific journal, and it is being hailed by leading
scientists as a potentially massive step forward.
The researchers discovered that
this stress, known as cellular senescence, is linked to dangerous tau
protein tangles that are a hallmark of 20 different brain conditions,
including traumatic brain injury and dementia. The scientists identified
senescent cells in postmortem brain tissue from sufferers of
Alzheimer's. They then also discovered these cells in postmortem tissue
from sufferers of progressive supranuclear palsy, another kind of brain
disease.
While cellular senescence does not outright kill the cell, it may cause it to become zombie-like, altering its functions and killing surrounding cells. According to a study, the senior author says, "when cells enter this stage, they change their genetic programming and become pro-inflammatory and toxic."
The team used a number of different types of medication to clear senescent cells out from the brains of 4 types of middle-aged Alzheimer's mice. The most effective 2 were quercetin, a natural flavonoid compound, and dasatinib, a chemotherapy medication.
While cellular senescence does not outright kill the cell, it may cause it to become zombie-like, altering its functions and killing surrounding cells. According to a study, the senior author says, "when cells enter this stage, they change their genetic programming and become pro-inflammatory and toxic."
The team used a number of different types of medication to clear senescent cells out from the brains of 4 types of middle-aged Alzheimer's mice. The most effective 2 were quercetin, a natural flavonoid compound, and dasatinib, a chemotherapy medication.
Very promising results were
seen after 3 months of treatment. "The mice were 20 months old and had
advanced brain disease when we started the therapy," according to the Dr. "After clearing the senescent cells, we saw improvements in brain
structure and function. This was observed in brain MRI studies (magnetic
resonance imaging) and postmortem histology studies of cell structure.
The treatment seems to have stopped the disease in its tracks."
One of the study's primary authors said that "the fact we were able to treat very old mice and see improvement gives us hope that this treatment might work in human patients even after they exhibit symptoms of a brain disease." This is because when testing cures for Alzheimer's, therapy usually only works if mice are treated prior to the disease's onset.
In Alzheimer's disease, the sufferer's brain tissue accumulates tangles of tau protein, in addition to another protein deposit known as amyloid beta plaque. The researchers discovered that it is tau accumulation that is responsible for cell senescence. The team compared Alzheimer's mice that had only amyloid beta plaques with mice that had only tau tangles. They found that senescence only took place in those mice that had tau tangles.
One of the study's primary authors said that "the fact we were able to treat very old mice and see improvement gives us hope that this treatment might work in human patients even after they exhibit symptoms of a brain disease." This is because when testing cures for Alzheimer's, therapy usually only works if mice are treated prior to the disease's onset.
In Alzheimer's disease, the sufferer's brain tissue accumulates tangles of tau protein, in addition to another protein deposit known as amyloid beta plaque. The researchers discovered that it is tau accumulation that is responsible for cell senescence. The team compared Alzheimer's mice that had only amyloid beta plaques with mice that had only tau tangles. They found that senescence only took place in those mice that had tau tangles.
Amazingly, the combination of
drugs administered did not merely decrease the occurrence of cell
senescence, but also the tau tangles themselves. "When we looked at
their brains three months later, we found that the brains had
deteriorated less than mice that received placebo control treatment,"
Dr. said. "We don't think brain cells actually grew back, but there
was less loss of neurons, less brain ventricle enlargement, improved
cerebral blood flow and a decrease in the tau tangles. These drugs were
able to clear the tau pathology."
According to the Dr., "this is the first of what we anticipate will be many studies to better understand this process," and that since "these drugs are approved for other uses in humans, we think a logical next step would be to start pilot studies in people."
Some great news is that these drugs are designed to only target and kill senescent cells and nothing else. What's more, due to their short half-life, they quickly disappear from the body and are not known to cause any negative side effects. Of course, human dosage and frequency will still need to be determined through clinical trials.
According to the Dr., "this is the first of what we anticipate will be many studies to better understand this process," and that since "these drugs are approved for other uses in humans, we think a logical next step would be to start pilot studies in people."
Some great news is that these drugs are designed to only target and kill senescent cells and nothing else. What's more, due to their short half-life, they quickly disappear from the body and are not known to cause any negative side effects. Of course, human dosage and frequency will still need to be determined through clinical trials.
The next step for the researchers will be to work out whether cell senescence is a part of traumatic brain injury, too. According to Dr. Orr, TBI is a brain injury which also causes an accumulation of tau proteins, and is a significant cause of disability for military personnel and many others.
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Labels: Alzheimer's, amyloid beta plaques, cellular senescence, chemo meds, dasatinib, progressive, Quercetin, supranuclear palsy, tau proteins, zombie-like cells
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