Scientists Track Hourly Changes in Alzheimer's Protein

Recovery from brain injury, not injury itself, associated with increased plaque

Related Encyclopedia • Acoustic Neurinoma • Alzheimer's Disease • Bell's Palsy • Brain and Spinal Cord Magnetic Resonance Imaging More... Related Healthscout Videos Importance of Good Nutrition Controlling Incontinence Preventing Heart Disease the Easy Way Lifestyle Changes for Heart Disease Prevention and Treatment More... Related Animations • Alzheimer's Disease Video Animation • Erectile Dysfunction • What is a Heart Attack? More... Related Drug Information • Actonel • Adderal XR • Concerta • Coumadin More... Related News Articles • Scans Show Sound-Processing Deficits in Autistic Kids • The Genetics Behind Language Impairment • Genes and Diabetes Increase Heart Problems • Heavy Traffic Can Be Heartbreaking More...

THURSDAY, Aug. 28 (HealthDay News) -- A group of researchers has described hourly changes in a protein in the brain that is thought to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease.

In a 2005 study, the protein, known as amyloid beta, was directly linked to brain cell communication in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease. When brain cell communication increased, so did amyloid beta. When there was reduced communication, amyloid beta decreased.

Text Continues Below

---

In the new study, published in the Aug. 29 issue of Science, researchers from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and from the University of Milan sought to find out why brain injury is linked to a higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

For their study, the researchers took samples of the fluid between the brain cells of 18 patients who were recovering from traumatic brain injuries or ruptured brain aneurysms. The samples were taken while the patients were in the intensive care unit, with the permission of their families.

The researchers didn't find what they expected. Having hypothesized that brain injuries would lead to an increase in amyloid beta levels, the researchers actually found that recovery from brain injury -- not the injury itself -- was associated with increased amyloid beta. In other words, the better the patient's overall neurological status, the higher his or her amyloid beta levels.

"We can't at this point rule out a very early spike in amyloid right after a brain injury," co-first author David L. Brody, a Washington University neurologist who treats brain injury and general neurology patients at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, said in a school press release. "This study is just the beginning."

More studies are needed to find out why brain injury increases Alzheimer's risk.

In addition to the possibility that brain injury accelerates harmful processes that cause Alzheimer's disease, another potential explanation for the link between brain injury and Alzheimer's is that the injury may reduce the brain's ability to compensate for Alzheimer's-related damage, making the symptoms appear earlier than they would otherwise.

Page:  1 | 2 | Next >>

-- Krisha McCoy