A molecule can clear Alzheimer’s plaques from the brains of mice and improve learning and memory, Korean scientists have found in early tests. Exactly how it gets rid of the abnormal build-up is not understood. The small Nature Communications study hints at a way to tackle the disease even once its in full swing, but there is no proof the same method would work in people.
Currently, there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease. Treatments can lessen the symptoms, but scientists are looking for ways to prevent, halt or reverse the disease. As the dementia progresses, more plaques (clumps of abnormal proteins and chemicals) form in the brain and healthy brain cells die off. Scientists reason that preventing or removing the plaques might help, and many drug candidates are in development.
Some drugs still being tested appear to stop the plaques from forming, but that is if it taken early enough, before the disease has advanced. Now the South Korean researchers believe they may have found a molecule, called EPPS, that could work even if plaques have already formed. Many more years of animal trials are still needed.