Alzheimer’s is characterized by the formation of sticky masses, called plaques, formed by the grouping together of long strands of the protein amyloid beta. The plaques contribute in a big way to Alzheimer’s one of whose symptoms is dementia, by disrupting the communication between the various cells inside the brain.
What is interesting about the disease is that the same protein amyloid beta, in shorter strands, helps prevent the formation of the plaques by ensuring the long strands do not end up coagulating.
The new class of drugs – Gamma Secretase Modulators (GSM) – work by reducing the amyloid beta levels. During the course of the study, the team of international researchers studied the two-sided effects of the GSM drugs and compared it with that of drugs that impacted the risk of heart attacks positively by ensuring lower bad cholesterol levels and increasing good cholesterol levels.
During their study, the researchers were able to determine how the GSM drugs worked. The study indicated the drugs work by preventing the beta amyloid present in the brain from forming the plaque. It does this by sticking to the protein itself.
The researchers said another significant fact was that the GSM does not affect the APP, which is the larger protein from which amyloid beta originates. Instead, the drugs target the amyloid structure directly.
According to neuroscientist Todd Golde, working with Jacksonville’s Mayo Clinic and a member of the research team, “This broadens the notion of what drugs can do and therefore has wide-reaching implication for future drug discovery for many different disorders.”
The first of the GSMs is getting ready to hit the market. To be marketed under the brand name Flurizan, it is a molecule called tarenflurbil that is currently in the clinical trial stage. The drug is actually in the final phase of clinical trials on human volunteers.
There are also a number of other GSM drugs slated to get into clinical trials over a timeframe of the next couple of years. This is what Rebecca Wood, who is a member of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust, had to say, “This is an exciting step forward towards a potential new treatment for Alzheimer's disease.”
Rebecca added, “Scientists may be able to use this proof-of-principle research to develop a new class of drugs that specifically target this mechanism [the build up of plaques] in an effort to slow or prevent the development of Alzheimer's disease."
Elaborating on the issue, Rebecca said, "Finding a way to prevent or delay the onset of dementia, even for a couple of years, would make a significant difference to the 700,000 people in the UK living with dementia and their families.”
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