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Post by maggie on Mar 5, 2011 17:05:52 GMT
SCIENTISTS are a step closer to developing drugs that could end the curse of Alzheimer’s, it emerged yesterday. Experts hope they can not only halt the damage caused by the condition but pave the way for transplants to repair it – in effect, offering a cure. Last night the key development was hailed as a significant advance in research. Professor Clive Ballard, director of research at the Alzheimer’s Society, said: “This study is an important step forward in developing treatments for the disease.” American researchers have used stem cells to create an endless supply of brain cells called neurons, which play a critical role in Alzheimer’s disease. Not only can these be used to test new drugs and work out how to stop them degenerating, but in an even more revolutionary move, the work could also be a step towards neuron transplants. Read more: www.express.co.uk/posts/view/232743/Alzheimer-s-cure-on-way/Alzheimer-s-cure-on-way#ixzz1FkIFp2XvWhat brilliant news - aren't scientists wonderful people!
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Post by sadie1263 on Mar 5, 2011 17:33:40 GMT
That won't really be the answer. I happen to do work with a product that involves research in this area. Part of the problem is that cells have lost their proper apoptosis....(programmed cell death).....in the case of Alzheimer's, Parkinsons, and other neurological diseases.....apoptosis is working too well.....and is actually destroying healthy cells and causing damage all over the place.
So just replacing neurons won't fix the problem.....it is merely a bandaid.
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Post by maggie on Mar 5, 2011 17:54:06 GMT
But scientists are learning how to make the cells to replace the dead ones and hope to learn how to stop them dying:
"The idea is that by reproducing a limitless supply of these cells scientists can work out a way to protect them from dying in the first place and eventually lead to transplantation into people with Alzheimer's.
Now that we have learned how to make these cells, we can study them in a tissue culture dish and figure out what we can do to prevent them from dying," said Dr Jack Kessler, who led the study at Northwestern University in Chicago. "
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Post by sadie1263 on Mar 5, 2011 20:21:40 GMT
It is definitely a step. I was just saying that replacing the dead ones would not do it. Also...there is the problem of the the gene expression AB142 that acts similar to plaque that accumulates along the neurons and actually forms almost hair like strings that insert themselves into the neurons that cause them to die.......It's a nasty business all the way around.
But every step they make is important. My MIL is in end stage Alzheimer's.
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Post by maggie on Mar 5, 2011 20:23:55 GMT
Sorry to hear that Sadie; must be a difficult time for your family.
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Post by pumpkinpie on Mar 10, 2011 22:02:55 GMT
It would be great to have a cure found for both alzheimers disease and cancer!
I just read a book recently called "Still Alice." It was about a woman who gets diagnosed at age fifty with ealy onset alzheimers disease. The book is very informative. Has anyone else read this? It just came out recently. I've known people who have had this disease, and even one young person. This book describes the symtoms better than any google search can. It actually tells the story through the mind of the alzheimers patient, which is interesting.
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Post by alanseago on Mar 11, 2011 7:05:34 GMT
Great progress has been made. Sixty years ago I had a schoolfriend with leukemia, in those days it was a death sentence. So much advance has been made, my wife has recently been diagnosed with a carcinogenic myoma in her uterus. This was found after her hysterectomy and she has been recommended to have preventative chimotherapy upon our return to France with a 90% chance of recovery.
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Post by sadie1263 on Mar 11, 2011 14:54:58 GMT
Sorry to hear that Alanseago......hope they get to that soon and that all goes well. My thoughts are with you!
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Post by maggie on Mar 12, 2011 17:20:07 GMT
Best wishes from me too Alanseago. Hope your wife makes 100% recovery soon.
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