Natalia
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 Posted: 08/27/06 - 07:10 Post subject: Scientists managed to restore memories in Alzheimer mice |
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In the study US scientists conducted regarding Alzheimer’s disease, mice, with and without Alzheimer’s, have been put in a cage and were subjected to a mild shock from the cage floor.
The group of mice without the disease stood still when they were put in the cage to avoid the shock while those with the Alzheimer’s didn’t because they couldn’t remember their first visit to the cage.
What scientists did next is that they increased the activity of an enzyme called Uch-L1. This enzyme has an important role in memory function. When the scientists increased the levels of the enzyme in the mice who suffered from Alzheimer’s and put them into the cage, they stood still just like the mice without the disease. This act shows that the mice’s memory has been restored.
Mice and humans form the disease in the same way. Both have plaques of protein amyloid beta in their brain and damaged synapses as well as memory loss.
Increased levels of the Uch-L1 enzyme did not only restore the mice’s memories but have also repaired the synapse function of the mice.
Although everybody agrees that this is a major finding and that it could help in development of therapies for this debilitating disease, the final cure is a long way off since more work needs to be done on humans. |
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