Scientists find key to preventing Alzheimer’s before mental decline
Scientists may have found a way to stop Alzheimer’s damage before it starts — by “melting” the tiny protein clumps that are the early triggers of the disease.
Alzheimer’s has long been linked to harmful tau protein fibrils that build up in the brain and interfere with cognitive function, but researchers have now discovered soft, small clusters that appear first.
When those early clusters were dissolved, it prevented the toxic fibrils from forming, which could effectively block the disease, according to researchers from Tokyo Metropolitan University.
Led by Professor Rei Kurita, the scientists used precise X-ray and fluorescence methods in a laboratory setting to find the microscopic “precursors,” which measured only tens of nanometers, according to a press release.
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