QUEBEC CITY -- Canadian scientists are reporting an interesting advance in the fight against Alzheimer's disease, which offers hope that certain cognitive functions could be partially restored.
Researchers at Laval University, Quebec City, and the University of Lethbridge, Alberta, say they have succeeded in reversing some of the cognitive symptoms associated with Alzheimer's in an animal model, not just slowing the progression of the disease.
Professor Yves De Koninck, from the Faculty of Medicine and a researcher at Université Laval's CERVO research center, points out that this has yet to be demonstrated in humans. However, in a press release, he said that the mechanism they've identified is a very interesting therapeutic target.
Previous studies have shown that even before Alzheimer's symptoms appear, brain activity is disrupted in people who will develop the disease. De Koninck explains that there is neuronal hyperactivity and signal disorganization in the brain.
The Quebec and Alberta researchers hypothesize that a mechanism that regulates neuronal activity, more specifically the one responsible for inhibiting neuronal signals, is disrupted.
Scientists found that by the age of four months, mice expressing symptoms of Alzheimer's disease were affected in two regions of the brain. People suffering from Alzheimer's disease are also affected in two areas of their brain.
Maintaining the circulation of ions in the brain's cell membrane could slow or reverse the pathology.
The researchers, therefore, developed a molecule in their laboratory which was administered to mice, improving their spatial memory and social behaviour.
Professor De Koninck's team is currently looking for other molecules that would be well tolerated by Alzheimer's sufferers.
The results were published in the scientific journal Brain.
This report was first published in French by The Canadian Press on Aug. 10, 2023.
