‘Designer’ protein hope for dementia treatment

A “DESIGNER” protein that could pave the way for new drugs to tackle Alzheimer’s disease has been created by British scientists.

The synthetic chemical will help to shed light on why nerve cells die in people with the incurable mental condition. It is the same size and shape as the Amyloid-beta (Abeta) proteins that clump together in the brains of patients, causing devastating memory loss and confusion.

But it contains two different amino acids – the building blocks which make up proteins – meaning it does not form into sticky plaques and is not toxic to nerve cells.

The protein described in Scientific Reports will be an essential laboratory tool for understanding the role of Abeta in Alzheimer’s.

Dr Karen Marshall, of the University of Sussex, said: “Understanding how the brain protein Abeta causes nerve cell death in Alzheimer’s patients is key if we are to find a cure for this disease.”

In Alzheimer’s patients Abeta proteins stick together to make amyloid fibrils which form clumps between neurons in the brain.

It is believed the build-up of these clumps causes brain cells to die, leading to cognitive decline.

Professor Louise Serpell, co-director of the university’s dementia research group, said: “This is a really exciting new tool that will contribute to research to uncover the causes for Alzheimer’s disease and enable tangible progress to be made towards finding targets for therapy.”

There are 850,000 people with dementia in the UK, with the number forecast to rise to more than a million by 2025 and over two million by 2051 unless a treatment is found.