Karl Herrup, Professor and Chair of Cell Biology and Neuroscience at Rutgers University published an intriguing new hypothesis in the Journal of Neuroscience earlier this week. The premise offers a new hypothesis for the cause of Alzheimer’s disease by suggesting that the researchers have long been focusing on the result of an Alzheimer’s ripple effect, rather than the true cause of the degenerative condition.
Recent research has focused on preventing the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain, which scientists had attributed to the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Herrup explains that researchers now have a tremendous wealth of data and technology to be able to target and prevent the protein plaque buildup, yet little progress has been made towards eradicating the disease. His theory suggests that instead focus should be place on the most widely accepted risk factor for developing the disease, age.
The hypothesis envisions three key steps that lead to Alzheimer’s disease:
- An initiating injury, such as a stroke or other type of vascular damage
- A chronic inflammation of the brain
- A cellular change in some, if not all, types of cells in the brain
He proposes that the normal aging process will cause age-appropriate declines in cognitive abilities among all people, but that a traumatic event to the brain could cause these cognitive declines to exaggerate and result in the symptoms associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Therefore the focus of research should be on the effects of long-term inflammation and anti-inflammatory responses to traumatic brain injuries.
In August of this year Herrup published a related study in PubMed that observed lab mice on a 9-month treatment of Ibuprofen. The study found a 90% decrease in plaque buildup; giving further credibility to his revolutionary new hypothesis.
Read the abstract of Professor Herrup’s hypothesis here: http://www.jneurosci.org/cgi/content/abstract/30/50/16755?maxtoshow=&hits=10&RESULTFORMAT=&author1=Herrup&andorexactfulltext=and&searchid=1&FIRSTINDEX=0&sortspec=relevance&resourcetype=HWCIT
See the forum, “Until there is a Cure: How to Help Alzheimer’s Patients and Families Now” where Alzheimer’s care experts give testimony to the Senate on caring for those with memory impairing diseases: http://www.c-spanvideo.org/program/AlzheimersC
