Interesting Alzheimer’s Research

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A number of threads in Alzheimer's research are focusing on areas other than the amyloid plaques characteristic of the condition. Via EurekAlert!: "Treatments that elevate the [protein] ubiquitin C-terminal hydrolase L1 (Uch-L1), [might] have potential as a new therapy for Alzheimer's disease ... we were able to restore a great deal of brain activity in a transgenic mouse model of Alzheimer's disease ... While amyloid beta is certainly a key player in Alzheimer's disease - and efforts to reduce it remain a worthy goal - our results show that, even in the presence of the plaque, damage to memory can be reversed ... Ubiquitin is a 'tag' that marks proteins for destruction by the cellular 'garbage disposal' known as the proteasome, Shelanski explained. Uch-L1 acts as the proteasome's 'gatekeeper' ... the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients show an accumulation of ubiquitin-tagged proteins, suggesting some defect of the protein degradation machinery."

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2006-08/cp-bet082106.php