A type of protein therapy may reverse the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease within one week, a new study has found.
A team of researchers has discovered that a protein called IL-33 can overturn cognitive weakening in mice, as well as a disease process that resembles that of Alzheimer's disease.
The discovery may pave the way for a possible breakthrough in Alzheimer's disease treatment.
Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer's disease is a debilitating condition, which up until now, has no definitive cure. It sickens millions of people all around the world and, it is expected to affect about 65 million by the year 2030.
"Alzheimer's disease currently has an urgent unmet clinical need," says study author Eddy Liew from the University of Glasgow. He and his colleagues hope their work could someday be applied to humans.
The most distinguishable features of Alzheimer's disease are the deposition of plaques and development of tangles in the brain. As the disease progresses, these changes clump up, resulting in the loss of links between nerve cells and subsequent cell death and brain tissue loss.
IL-33: How Does This Protein Work
IL-33 is a protein generated by different kinds of cells in the body, specifically rich in the brain and spinal cord.
For the study, the team wanted to find out the therapeutic role of IL-33 in Alzheimer's disease. To do that, they injected IL-33 to a strain of mouse with Alzheimer's-like disease associated with aging.
The findings show that IL-33 enhanced memory and cognition of the mice models in such a way that their brains resembled that of the age-matched normal mice within a week.
The protein seems to function by moving brain immune cells to enclose, take and engulf the plaques, reducing their number and size. IL-33 particularly does this by activating an enzyme called neprilysin, which is recognized to destroy plaques.
Aside from clearing the plaques, the team also found that IL-33 stopped brain tissue inflammation, which have been known to initiate the development of plaques and tangles. This means that IL-33 proteins also have preventive functions as well.
More To Come
Although the relevance of the study to actual human applications is not yet clear, it offers hope specially for the families of patients suffering from Alzehimer's. However, Liew reminds that there is a space between laboratory results and actual clinical applications. There have been numerous potential medical breakthroughs that showed promise in the laboratory, but failed in clinical testings.
At the moment, the IL-33 study is just about to start its Phase I clinical trial, which will specifically look at the toxicity of the doses used in the laboratory experiments.
In the end, Liew says this is a good beginning.
The study was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences USA on April 18.
