New research in humans and mice identifies a particular signaling molecule that can help modify inflammation and the immune system to protect against Alzheimer’s disease. The work, which was led by investigators at Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH), is published in Nature.
Cognitive decline associated with Alzheimer’s disease develops when neurons begin to die. “Neuron death can be caused by improper immune responses and excessive neuroinflammation — or inflammation in the brain — triggered by high levels of amyloid beta deposits and tau tangles, two hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease,” explains the paper’s co-senior author Filip Swirski, PhD, who conducted the work while a principal investigator in the Center for Systems Biology at MGH.
“Once neurons start dying in increasing amounts, brain cells called microglia and astrocytes — which are normally nurturing cells that clean up…
