Brain research - understanding what causes Alzheimer's

- Thu, 20 Sep 2007

Alzheimer's Disease may be caused by the same tiny molecule that causes Mad Cow Disease, according to new findings at Harvard University.

The insidious protein, called a prion, was discovered around 20 years ago. In Mad Cow Disease it rearranges the structure of protein cells in the brain in its own image. The new findings show how, in humans, it acts differently. A report in The Economist explains the mechanics: Healthy cells create plenty of junk that keeps the system busy. The hundreds of steps of folding that create a complex protein can take a cell many minutes to complete. And with so many steps, mistakes often occur, and wrongly wrought proteins need to be binned before they cause substantial damage.

Normally these error-filled proteins are flushed away, however the new study observed that when prions are present, they jam the body's natural disposal system and the build-up of waste starts to kill nerve cells, which results in Alzheimer's Disease.

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