A SINGLE pill has the potential to treat multiple brain conditions including Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and multiple sclerosis. Scientists have developed a new class of drug which can be taken orally and prevents the damaging effects of inflammation in the brain. Early results from animal studies suggest it could be effective against a plethora of devastating brain conditions. They include Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis (MS), motor neurone disease, frontotemporal dementia, and complications from traumatic brain injury. Two of the drugs, known as MW151 and MW189, have been patented by US scientists at Northwestern University in Chicago. They work by blocking excess production of damaging immune system signalling molecules called pro-inflammatory cytokines. New research published in the Journal of Neuroscience showed how early treatment with MW151 prevented the development of full-blown Alzheimer's in laboratory mice. Scientists say the drugs offer a completely different approach to treating the disease to others currently being tested. These target the accumulation of beta amyloid protein deposits in the brain which are a key feature of Alzheimer's. In contrast the new drugs are designed to stop inflammation disrupting wiring in the brain and killing neurons. See the rest here: Pill could treat brain conditions … Continue reading →

By MONIFA J. THOMAS Health Reporter mjthomas@suntimes.com July 24, 2012 4:46PM 8-30-2010---General scenes of Northwestern University in Evanston---for affordable colleges story---The archway on Sheridan Road--on campus--Sun-Times photo by Tom Cruze storyidforme: 34011645 tmspicid: 12477858 fileheaderid: 5669370 Updated: July 24, 2012 9:37PM A new class of drug shows promise it might one day offer a new form of treatment for Alzheimers disease, as well as helping fight multiple sclerosis and traumatic brain injury, researchers from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and the University of Kentucky reported Tuesday. In tests on mice, the experimental drugs reduced inflammation in the brain. Such neuroinflammation is believed to play a key role in the progressive damage involved in Alzheimers and the other neurological conditions, as well as in stroke. Reporting in the Journal of Neuroscience, the researchers said they found that that one of the experimental drugs, known as MW151, significantly slowed the effects of Alzheimers disease in mice that were genetically engineered to develop the disease when given orally three times a week beginning at six months of age. The mouse study was designed to be comparable to when a human patient would begin to develop mild cognitive impairment, an early sign of … Continue reading →

Public release date: 24-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Jennifer Kritz 617-636-3707 Tufts University, Health Sciences Campus BOSTON (July 24, 2012, 5:00PM EST)A study, performed in mice and utilizing post-mortem samples of brains from patients with Alzheimer's disease, found that a single event of a moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) can disrupt proteins that regulate an enzyme associated with Alzheimer's. The paper, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, identifies the complex mechanisms that result in a rapid and robust post-injury elevation of the enzyme, BACE1, in the brain. These results may lead to the development of a drug treatment that targets this mechanism to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease. "A moderate-to-severe TBI, or head trauma, is one of the strongest environmental risk factors for Alzheimer's disease. A serious TBI can lead to a dysfunction in the regulation of the enzyme BACE1. Elevations of this enzyme cause elevated levels of amyloid-beta, the key component of brain plaques associated with senility and Alzheimer's disease," said first author Kendall Walker, PhD, postdoctoral associate in the department of neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM). Building on her previous work, neuroscientist Giuseppina Tesco, MD, PhD, of Tufts University School of … Continue reading →

Public release date: 24-Jul-2012 [ | E-mail | Share ] Contact: Marla Paul marla-paul@northwestern.edu 312-503-8928 Northwestern University CHICAGO --- A new class of drug developed at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine shows early promise of being a one-size-fits-all therapy for Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, multiple sclerosis and traumatic brain injury by reducing inflammation in the brain. Northwestern has recently been issued patents to cover this new drug class and has licensed the commercial development to a biotech company that has recently completed the first human Phase 1 clinical trial for the drug. The drugs in this class target a particular type of brain inflammation, which is a common denominator in these neurological diseases and in traumatic brain injury and stroke. This brain inflammation, also called neuroinflammation, is increasingly believed to play a major role in the progressive damage characteristic of these chronic diseases and brain injuries. By addressing brain inflammation, the new class of drugs -- represented by MW151 and MW189 -- offers an entirely different therapeutic approach to Alzheimer's than current ones being tested to prevent the development of beta amyloid plaques in the brain. The plaques are an indicator of the disease but not a proven cause. … Continue reading →

ScienceDaily (July 24, 2012) A study, performed in mice and utilizing post-mortem samples of brains from patients with Alzheimer's disease, found that a single event of a moderate-to-severe traumatic brain injury (TBI) can disrupt proteins that regulate an enzyme associated with Alzheimer's. The paper, published in The Journal of Neuroscience, identifies the complex mechanisms that result in a rapid and robust post-injury elevation of the enzyme, BACE1, in the brain. These results may lead to the development of a drug treatment that targets this mechanism to slow the progression of Alzheimer's disease. "A moderate-to-severe TBI, or head trauma, is one of the strongest environmental risk factors for Alzheimer's disease. A serious TBI can lead to a dysfunction in the regulation of the enzyme BACE1. Elevations of this enzyme cause elevated levels of amyloid-beta, the key component of brain plaques associated with senility and Alzheimer's disease," said first author Kendall Walker, PhD, postdoctoral associate in the department of neuroscience at Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM). Building on her previous work, neuroscientist Giuseppina Tesco, MD, PhD, of Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM), led a research team that first used an in vivo model to determine how a single episode of … Continue reading →