Medicine

To protect against dementia, the brain will be cleansed

To protect against dementia, the brain will be cleansed
It is possible that scientists have discovered a way to cleanse the brain of toxic proteins that provoke senile dementia and Parkinson's disease. However, if they have already begun, then it will be impossible to help.

A research team at Washington University in St. Louis may have discovered a new way to clear the brain of toxic beta-amyloid and tau proteins that can cause dementia and even Parkinson's disease. Experts are convinced that dementia is triggered by beta-amyloid proteins that accumulate in the brain, stick together, which disrupts the conduction of neurons, causing loss of memory and general intellectual function.

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And now, a study has shown that increasing the level of a single protein, aquaporin 4, helps remove these proteins. In laboratory mice genetically engineered to produce more beta-amyloid proteins, aquaporin-4-boosting compounds cleared these harmful proteins faster than mice given placebo or an inert liquid.

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Aquaporin 4 can be boosted with the compound apigenin, which is already available as a dietary supplement. But it is not necessary to pounce on it yet, since its other effect is unknown. In the meantime, scientists are looking for other compounds that could be used to reduce beta-amyloid proteins in the brain. In addition, it is important to deliver them not through a needle in the skull, as was done with mice, but by other more gentle methods. (READ MORE) Washington University in St. Louis

Washington University in St. Louis

Medicine

a US private research university located in St. Louis, Missouri