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Implants Can Relieve Damage Caused By Alzheimer's |
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Recent research by Harvard University may lead to relief for Alzheimer's sufferers everywhere. Genetically engineered cells remove the toxic plaques commonly associated with the disease.
The cells have been tested on animals who were given the disease by the same human gene which causes Alzheimer's. After being given the cells, the plaques simply melted away.
Alzheimer's is caused by a protein called Amyloid-Beta which forms clumps of toxic masses which interfere with the normal operation of the brain by killing nearby brain cells, disrupting thinking and memory. The genetically engineered cells produce an enzyme which works by breaking up these Amyloid clumps..
If this treatment becomes available for humans, it would involve taking a cell from a patient, genetically modifying it, then reinserting the modified cells. Gene therapy is also being considered for research involving cancer treatment.
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Brain implants relieve Alzheimer's damage
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