In the course of Alzheimer’s disease, two proteins called “amyloid” and “tau” accumulate in the brain. A DZNE study with more than 200 participants now provides insights into the interaction of these pathological phenomena. The data suggest that tau load in the brain impairs memory functions only when amyloid burden is also high. These findings therefore support therapeutic approaches aimed at removing amyloid from the brain in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease. A research team led by Prof. Emrah Düzel reports on this in the journal Brain.
“It has long been known that deposits of tau proteins in the so-called hippocampus and in neighboring brain areas impair memory. In the case of amyloid, on the other hand, no clear relationship to memory performance has been found to date. For this reason, among others, it is debated whether it makes sense at all to target amyloid…
