Alzheimer's-linked protein can travel into brain, study shows
Researchers have discovered that tissue from outside the brain
that contains misfolded beta-amyloid protein can travel and
'infect' the brain. Pathological protein deposits have been
strongly linked to the genesis of the neurodegenerative disorder
called Alzheimer's disease. The support for the research came
from the ERA-NET NEURON (Network of European Funding for
Neuroscience Research) project, which backed the MIPROTRAN
project involved in the study. ERA-NET NEURON, for its part,
received nearly EUR 3 million under the ERA-NET scheme of the
Sixth Framework Programme (FP6). The study was recently
published in the journal Science. Alzheimer's disease is the
most common form of dementia that starts later in life and where
the symptoms gradually worsen. It is incurable and scientists
are still largely in the dark about what causes the disorder.
Most often, it is diagnosed in people over 65 years of age
although the less-prevalent early-onset Alzheime