Apotential treatment for Alzheimer’s disease and reversal of some of the neurodegeneration caused by the disease has been discovered by Neuroscientists from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).
The new treatment has been detailed in a peer-reviewed study, which has been published on Wednesday in the journal PNAS.
The new treatment, using peptides, interacts with the CDK5 enzyme. The CDK5 enzyme is overactive in Alzheimer’s patient’s brains. Fortunately, the peptide has not shown signs of reacting with the essential CDK1 enzyme which shares structural similarities with CDK5.
What is CDK5 and how does the treatment work?
CDK5 binds with P35 and changes the cellular structure. The change allows P35 to Phosphorylate and become P25. P25 has a longer half-life than P35.
CDK5 can bind to P25, and the combination can target the Tau protein and add Phosphorylate, which then causes the neurofibrillary tangles associated with Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and frontotemporal dementia.
From the 1543 book in the collection in National Institute of Medicine. Andreas Vesalius’ Fabrica, showing the Base Of The Brain, including the cerebellum, olfactory bulbs, optic nerve (credit: ANCHETA WIS/PUBLIC DOMAIN/VIA WIKIMEDIA COMMONS)
The new treatment has undergone animal trials and shown promising results. Researchers treated mice with the peptide and the peptide caused massive reductions in neurodegeneration and DNA damage in the brain.
After the treatment, the mice showed reduced mutations of Tau pathologies and neuron loss. The researchers also observed behavioral improvements, with the treated mice performing better in maze tests that relied on spatial memory.
by: DANIELLE GREYMAN-KENNARD
published on The Jerusalem Post