Word: beta-amyloid
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Indeed, unless these clinical trials run into unexpected snafus, a long and fierce debate may soon be resolved. As the Alzheimer Association's Thies puts it, "Either the beta-amyloid hypothesis is correct, in which case new therapies should come very quickly, or it isn't, in which case researchers at major laboratories will very quickly switch their efforts to more productive directions...
...outside in. Supporters of the first scenario believe abnormalities in a protein called tau cause neurons in the brain's memory centers to clutter themselves up with tangled filaments, bringing cellular metabolism to a standstill. Still others think the damage is dealt by an external agent: the so-called beta-amyloid protein that aggregates in the brain, forming fibrous plaques. These plaques in turn injure neighboring neurons, causing them...
Which version of events is correct? Since both plaques and tangles are found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, a number of clinicians suspect that tau and beta-amyloid may each play a role, though not necessarily in every patient. For in contrast to the simplistic thinking that dominated the Alzheimer's field only two decades ago, medical researchers now believe this common form of senile dementia is actually a cluster of diseases that, like diabetes and heart disease, may have more than one fundamental cause...
...world of science, confusion is often a sign of progress, and this may prove to be the case here. "The best," predicts Washington University neuropathologist Dr. Leonard Berg, "is yet to come." Already researchers are rushing to develop compounds that take aim at the tau and beta-amyloid proteins. They are also re-examining existing drugs that may offer therapeutic pportunities. Some experts, for example, speculate that antioxidants such as vitamin E and anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen could help shield neurons from chemical damage. Others have seized on tantalizing hints that the female hormone estrogen may delay the onset...