Zeroing in on Alzheimer’s
Hereditary Alzheimer’s disease has been shown to be the result of mutations in certain specific genes. Other cases of Alzheimer’s are also assumed to be traceable to the influence of a number of still unidentified genes. It is probable that these genes are located in a large area on chromosome 10q, which contains more than 100 genes.
Working with researchers in Gothenburg and Los Angeles, scientists at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden have now narrowed down the area of interest on chromosome 10 to include only three genes. The results are being published in the journal Human Mutation Online, September 24, 2003.
One of these highly interesting genes codes for the protein insulin degrading enzyme (IDE). This protein is a strong candidate for a role in Alzheimer’s owing to its biological function — it breaks down extracellular amyloid-beta protein, one of the substances that make up the senile plaque that is formed in Alzheimer’s.
The study has analyzed the DNA from 648 patients with Alzheimer’s and 663 healthy individuals. The results show a significant coupling between the limited three-gene region including the gene for IDE and the risk of disease and the severity of the disease.
Media Contact
All latest news from the category: Health and Medicine
This subject area encompasses research and studies in the field of human medicine.
Among the wide-ranging list of topics covered here are anesthesiology, anatomy, surgery, human genetics, hygiene and environmental medicine, internal medicine, neurology, pharmacology, physiology, urology and dental medicine.
Newest articles
High-energy-density aqueous battery based on halogen multi-electron transfer
Traditional non-aqueous lithium-ion batteries have a high energy density, but their safety is compromised due to the flammable organic electrolytes they utilize. Aqueous batteries use water as the solvent for…
First-ever combined heart pump and pig kidney transplant
…gives new hope to patient with terminal illness. Surgeons at NYU Langone Health performed the first-ever combined mechanical heart pump and gene-edited pig kidney transplant surgery in a 54-year-old woman…
Biophysics: Testing how well biomarkers work
LMU researchers have developed a method to determine how reliably target proteins can be labeled using super-resolution fluorescence microscopy. Modern microscopy techniques make it possible to examine the inner workings…
