New research shows how Alzheimer's is spread throughout the brain

June 9, 10:03 AMPittsburgh Elder Care ExaminerDavid Lindberg

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New research shows that a protein that is normally in our brains somehow changes into a rogue protein and triggers formation of protein tangles which are linked to Alzheimer's Disease.

This protein normally plays a role in our nerve cells functioning properly, but when changed to the rogue form, can spread to healthy cells in the brain. In this latest study, researchers, led by a team from University Hospital, Basel, extracted sections of brain from mice expressing a mutant form of human tau protein. These extracts were injected into specific regions in the brains of healthy mice. An analysis then showed the formation and spread of tangles had occurred.

This research has increased the knowledge of how Alzheimer's Disease spreads in the brain, which just adds to the hope of future treatments and possible cures.

According to Dr Susanne Sorensen, head of research at the Alzheimer's Society, "There is still so much we do not understand about the changes in tau that lead to tangle formation in humans and, eventually, widespread brain cell death."