New drug that can treat AND diagnose dementia

ADRUG that acts ‘like a ninja’ could stop the progression of Alzheimer’s without causing side-effects. Scientists are developing the drug that stops beta amyloid protein in the brain from grouping into plaques — one of the main causes of Alzheimer’s disease. It has been dubbed the ninja drug because it specifically targets only toxic types of amyloid protein, groups of the beta type, neutralising them without damaging healthy parts of the brain.

Early results suggest the drug — known as PMN310 — is more effective at blocking the spread of these toxic groups than other drugs currently being trialled as Alzheimer’s treatments.

Tests on mice also found it prevented short-term memory loss and may even reverse symptoms.

Around 850,000 people in the UK have dementia and 62 per cent of those have Alzheimer’s disease.

In Alzheimer’s, proteins build up within the brain forming either plaques — caused by beta amyloid — or tangles: both kill nerve cells and damage the brain.

No successful treatment exists for the disease and most drugs tested so far have failed to remove plaques from the brain.

But the ‘ninja’ drug, developed by Canadian biotech company proMIS, is designed to target Alzheimer’s in a different way — by preventing plaque from building up in the first place.

Beta amyloid protein is produced throughout our lifetime as a waste product from the brain’s natural processes.

In younger people, the brain can clear out the waste product more quickly than it makes it, but as people age the balance shifts and amyloid begins to build up.

With Alzheimer’s, the protein starts grouping and can form plaques which damage nerve cells and eventually kill brain tissue. The disease process can start years before any symptoms show, so experts believe targeting beta amyloid before it turns into plaque could be key to preventing the spread of the disease — and even stop symptoms occurring.

Researchers from proMIS and the University of British Columbia in Canada designed the PMN310 drug to bind to these toxic beta amyloid groups and stop them from killing nerve cells without damaging any other parts of the brain.

Tests on humans to see if the drug can halt the progression of Alzheimer’s are due to start within the next 18 months. In future, the drug could even be used as a way to diagnose Alzheimer’s. Early tests showed it binds to toxic amyloid groups in spinal fluid as well as in the brain, meaning it could be used to test whether someone has high levels present in their body — a potential warning sign for Alzheimer’s.

Commenting on the drug, Dr Doug Brown, director of research and development at the Alzheimer’s Society said: ‘This promising study shows the design of a new drug to target amyloid in a different way — removing the groups of amyloid protein that develop before they become plaques.

‘Researchers believe this may be more effective and safer than removing the plaques themselves. It’s very early days for this drug, and more development will be needed before it can even be tested for safety in people.’

MEANWHILE, scientists have found people who suffer breathing problems in their sleep are at a 26 per cent higher risk of developing dementia.

Researchers at Wheaton College in the U.S. found those with sleep apnoea had more plaque in their brains and built it up at a faster rate. Sleep apnoea is a condition where the airways close during sleep, temporarily starving the brain of oxygen.

Scientists believe this accelerates damage to the brain and increases the build-up of plaque — a key cause of Alzheimer’s.