Home
Addiction
Protein Increases Production of Amyloid Beta in Alzheimer’s Disease
International researchers have found that the N60 section of a protein called "RanBP9" increases the production of the amyloid beta protein, which is present in excessive amounts in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease. Most experts believe that if the creation of amyloid beta protein can be halted or slowed, the devastating effects of Alzheimer's disease may also be stopped or slowed too.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Alzheimer's disease is the most common form of dementia among older adults, affecting as many as 5 million Americans. Alzheimer's disease involves parts of the brain that control thought, memory, and language and can seriously affect a person's ability to carry out daily activities. Alzheimer's disease usually begins after age 60, and risk goes up with age. About 5 percent of men and women ages 65 to 74 have Alzheimer's disease, and nearly half of those aged 85 and older may have the disease.
The image depicts the comparison of a normal aged brain (top) and an Alzheimer's patient's brain (bottom). Differential characteristics are pointed out.
The researchers examined extracts from brains with Alzheimer's disease and age-matched healthy controls and found that the N60 section of RanBP9 was increased in Alzheimer's brain. When control DNA, full-length RanBP9 DNA, and RanBP9-N60 DNA were individually expressed in cultured cells, they found that cells expressing the full length RanBP9 protein had an increased amount of the amyloid beta protein that was 3-fold over control, and cells expressing the RanBP9 protein and N60 section had an increased amount of the amyloid beta protein that was 5-fold over control.
According to David Kang, one of the researchers involved in the work, "Our study suggests that targeting RanBP9 expression and/or N60 fragment generation may lead to novel strategies to combat this devastating disease."
References:
1. Madepalli K. Lakshmana, John Y. Chung, Supul Wickramarachchi, Eileen Tak, Elisabetta Bianchi, Edward H. Koo, David E. Kang. A fragment of the scaffolding protein RanBP9 is increased in Alzheimer's disease brains and strongly potentiates amyloid- peptide generation. FASEB J. doi:10.1096/fj.09-136457.
Related Articles
Scientists have found that complete or partial removal of an enzyme that regulates fatty acid levels improves cognitive deficits in a mouse model of Alzheimer's. Their findings identified
|
According to a new brain imaging study by scientists, young adults with the APOE4 gene variant, which raises their risk of developing Alzheimer's, show changes in their brain activity decades
|
According to a study, people who have parents diagnosed with Alzheimer's or dementia may be more likely to have mild cognitive impairment or memory loss themselves in middle
|
New research shows that the elderly who are thinner or are losing weight rapidly are at a higher risk of developing dementia, especially if they were overweight or obese.
The researchers
|
|
A study published in the journal Alzheimer Disease and Associated Disorders has shown that a fully automated procedure called Volumetric MRI, which measures the “memory centers” of the
|
Latest Health News
 Tuesday, 09 February 2010
The association between television viewing and childhood obesity is directly related to children's exposure to
|
 Tuesday, 09 February 2010
A Mediterranean diet may help people avoid the small areas of brain damage that can lead to problems with thinking
|
 Tuesday, 09 February 2010 {loadposition cardio_ads}
High blood pressure appears to predict the progression to dementia in older adults with impaired
|
 Monday, 08 February 2010
Workers exposed to tricholorethylene (TCE), a chemical once widely used to clean metal such as auto parts, may be at
|
 Monday, 08 February 2010
Consuming two or more soft drinks per week increased the risk of developing pancreatic cancer by nearly twofold
|
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |