Should we look differently to find a cure?

Alzheimer’s diseaseIt is the most common form of dementia and affects more than 50 million people worldwide. According to researchers from Krumble Brain Institute Toronto,” A new patient is diagnosed every three seconds “.

However, despite hundreds of clinical trials conducted over the past 30 years, there is no There is no cure preventive or curative.

” So we need to think differently about disease “Released researchers.” So far, most approaches have been based on the theory that a protein called beta-amyloid, thought to be abnormal in the brain, clumps together. And when they clump together, they kill brain cells. In fact, we think beta-amyloid is actually exactly where it should be. It acts as an immune peptide – a messenger within our immune system – so that if we have a head injury, beta-amyloid fixes it. If a virus or bacteria arrives, beta-amyloid is there to fight it. »

Function to be confirmed…

For scientists, Alzheimer’s disease occurs when beta-amyloid confuses bacteria and a brain cell. Then it inadvertently attacks our brain cells. In short, it could be an autoimmune disease.

Remember that an autoimmune disease results from a defect in the immune system that causes it to turn on the body and attack its natural components. This calls into question the idea of ​​the “amyloid cascade” coined in the early 1990s, according to which the accumulation of beta-amyloid in the brain leads to neuronal toxicity.

As you understand, before moving forward, this work very much needs confirmation. But for Dr. Donald Weaver, the author of this hypothesis, ” Concretely rethinking Alzheimer’s disease as an autoimmune disease and beta-amyloid as a natural part of our immune system will open the door to new avenues and new approaches to developing innovative treatments.. »

Source: Alzheimer’s disease and dementia.