Alzheimer’s disease, this neurodegenerative pathology, is characterized by two types of brain lesions: amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary degeneration. The early detection of these markers represents an important challenge for scientists in the treatment of this form of dementia. The discovery made by researchers from the Institut Pasteur, Inserm, CNRS, CEA, Pierre and Marie Curie and Paris Descartes universities and Roche offers a new avenue for early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease .
It is based on the development of two types of antibodies capable of detecting amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles characteristic of Alzheimer’s disease. These two kinds ofantibody were designed after observing those found in lamas. These works were reported in the Journal of Controlled Release.
Testing treatments before the first symptoms of Alzheimer’s
Their particularity? Tested in vitro on brain tissue from patients with Alzheimer’s disease and then on mice, scientists observed that these new antibodies, once injected intravenously, were able to cross the blood-brain barrier to specifically identify the amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles.
These two signs of the disease are thus clearly visible in the brain.
The challenge of this discovery is explained by Pierre Lafaye, head of the antibody engineering platform at the Institut Pasteur, director of the study: “Being able to offer an early diagnosis could make it possible to test treatments before the appearance of symptoms, which was not possible until now”, he explains in a press release from the Institut Pasteur.
Diagnosis of #Alzheimer‘s disease: llama antibodies detect cerebral lesions https://t.co/S0MBY3DS7epic.twitter.com/6PpqPwrkuh
— Institut Pasteur (@institutpasteur) November 3, 2016
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