Researchers at Cambridge University have developed a new technique to track the progress of Alzheimer's disease by comparing the stem cells of healthy people and those with Down's syndrome.

Alzheimer's is more common in people with Down's syndrome as they possess an extra chromosome that carries amyloid, the protein which causes the spread of dementia.

Study lead, Dr Rick Livesey, said: "One of the biggest challenges facing dementia researchers at the moment is a lack of good ways to track the disease over time.

"By using stem cells donated from people with Down’s syndrome – who are much more likely to develop Alzheimer’s – we have been able to track how the disease develops over a shorter time period than has been possible in the past."

After using stem cells to generate networks of functioning nerve cells mirroring those in the cerebral cortex, Dr Livesey's team found that levels of amyloid in the cells of those with Down's were double those of healthy cells within four weeks.

This new modelling technique has been welcomed by dementia charities including Alzheimer's Research UK, whose head of research, Dr Simon Ridley, said: "Modelling a complex disease like Alzheimer’s is a big challenge, but innovative approaches like this can improve our understanding. 

"Increasing our understanding of dementia is essential not only for people with Down’s syndrome, but for the 820,000 people across the UK living with the condition. It is essential that we improve the models that we have for understanding dementia, but as dementia research is so desperately underfunded, we must invest now if we are to find the answers that are so urgently needed."

For more information visit www.alzheimersresearchuk.org - the study results appear in full in the current edition of Science Translational Medicine.
Posted 17/02/2012 by richard.hook@pavpub.com