Nestlé's Institute of Health Sciences (NIHS) has partnered with Swiss company AC Immune to develop a diagnostic test for Alzheimer's disease.
Marking Nestlé's second undertaking in the medical field, the collaboration's goal is to utilize Tau proteins as a minimally invasive diagnostic exam to detect early Alzheimer's disease and possibly other neurodegenerative conditions
"This collaboration agreement opens up exciting new possibilities in the quest to better understand and combat this debilitating disease," said Ed Baetge, head of the Nestlé's Institute of Health Sciences.
Presence of Tau proteins, or Tangles, is one of the hallmarks in diagnosing Alzheimer's and other neurodegenerative disease, the other being beta-amyloid proteins or Plaques. The presence of these proteins will gradually increase in time in people with Alzheimer's disease, which eventually causes memory problems and cognitive decline.
Eva Schier, communications manager for AC Immune, said that detecting Tau protein in the blood was once impossible. In this front, Nestlé promised to contribute its patented antibody-based detection platform that can measure specified soluble proteins accurately. The experiments are still in its early stages, so it is still too soon to tell whether the added technology will bring success or not.
AC Immune considered developing a tool to facilitate early detection of Alzheimer's disease as an important need that should be addressed in managing the disease mandatorily.
"The development of a minimally invasive diagnostic test to identify patients at very early stages is considered as one of the most pressing needs in Alzheimer's disease," said [pdf] Dr. Andrea Pfeifer, the firm's CEO. "Early diagnosis of this critical global health problem is equally needed for the development of pharmaceutical as well as nutritional approaches."
Over the past few years, Nestlé has been investing further into healthcare field advancements than on the food products often associated with the company like sweets, soups and dairy products. Nestlé even confirmed that they have just signed a partnership with another company to help develop new treatments for ulcerative colitis.
Alzheimer's disease is one of the most common neurodegenerative diseases, affecting more than 46 million families worldwide. It is characterized by mild to severe memory loss which can eventually interfere with social interaction, self-care and everyday functioning.
There is currently no cure for Alzheimer's disease but ongoing research is being conducted to learn more about the disease. Current treatment modalities for the disease include medications to help relieve memory loss symptoms and delay disease progress as well as care and lifestyle modifications.
Photo: Pedro Ribeiro Simões | Flickr
