From NIH Research Matters
Alzheimer’s disease is an irreversible brain disorder that affects more than 5 million Americans. It slowly worsens and destroys memory and thinking skills.
Previous research has linked memory and thinking problems with visible changes that take place in the brain. People with Alzheimer’s have abnormal deposits of proteins called amyloid plaques and tau tangles. Plaques obstruct communication between nerve cells (or neurons) in the brain. Tau tangles disrupt processes in the cells and cause them to die.
Treatment may slow memory loss, but there’s no cure for Alzheimer’s disease. A better understanding of how the disease progresses may lead to more effective treatments.
A research team led by Drs. Manolis Kellis and Li-Huei Tsai of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology set out to identify the unique sets of genes that are turned on, or…
