
Trial drugs 'reverse' Alzheimer's - gibsonf1
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/8033422.stm
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oldgregg
I feel like for the past 8 years I've been regularly hearing about some new
surgery or drug that substantially cures or halts Alzheimer... But is anything
coming of it?

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JulianMorrison
The trouble is, until it has passed a double-blind test, it's basically
hearsay. We have those tests because even good researchers working with
seemingly promising drugs can be fooled by optimism or other biases.

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pygy
Catchy title. Wake me up when the first clinical trials show some positive
results. Myriads of wonderdrugs for mice have sadly been found to be
ineffective in humans.

That said, if it works for us, I'll be among the first to try it, as soon as
it's availlable.

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Bjoern
"Wake me up" is unfortunately the right expression. Not only do some drugs
react differently in humans but until it really will reach the patient many
years will pass I suppose.

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chops
_This findings build on the team's 2007 breakthrough in which mice with
symptoms of Alzheimer's disease regained long-term memories and the ability to
learn._

This is amazing news if it's really true. Like many here, my grandmother is
suffering from dementia/alzheimer's, and she remembers none of her
grandchildren, and occasionally she'll remember her some of her children. It
would be nice if she could remember me again.

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a-priori
About a month ago, I presented their 2007 paper in a seminar class, so I'm
familiar with their work. The biochemistry of how HDAC inhibitors work is over
my head, but the neuroscience is quite intriguing and promising.

Here's what they say about HDAC inhibitors in the abstract of the 2007 paper:
"Moreover, increased histone acetylation by inhibitors of histone deacetylases
induced sprouting of dendrites, an increased number of synapses, and
reinstated learning behaviour and access to long-term memories".

That paper showed that the effects of HDAC inhibitors were similar to
environmental enrichment in recovering and preventing the loss of memories.
The interesting part is that they do not prevent neuronal loss by brain
atrophy; memory improves in the mice _despite_ severe atrophy.

If you're interested, the article I'm referring to is: Fischer et al. Recovery
of learning and memory is associated with chromatin remodelling. Nature (2007)
vol. 447 (7141) pp. 178.

Edit: Their experiments used mice, not rats. Oops.

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TallGuyShort
I'm curious as to how they know the mice regained long-term memories...

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a-priori
I haven't read this paper, but I have read the 2007 paper they mention in the
article. In that study, the mice were trained in a Morris water maze task.
Then, different groups are tested either immediately, 3 hours later, 24 hours
later or 2 weeks later.

Some in each group were given a histone deacetylase inhibitor, and they were
compared to controls that were not. All these mice were transgenic knockout
mice. When put on a diet containing doxycycline, their brains begin to
atrophy. (Edit: all the experimental mice were on this diet)

I assume this paper uses a similar procedure.

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mnemonicsloth
Good. This could alleviate a lot of human suffering if it's real.

Now is the time to start the discussion: what if these drugs are also capable
of increasing neuroplasticity above baseline in otherwise healthy adults?

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antidaily
Wow @ "We desperately need to fund more research to head off a forecast
doubling the UK population living with dementia."

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rms
I had to do a bit of research recently and I was surprised to find that
dementia is mostly a misnomer. Dementia is a set of symptons, not an
underlying cause. The most common causes of dementia is Alzheimer's. And as
cruel as Alzheimer's may be, the other non-curable disorders are adamantly
_not_ better.

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dschoon
Though not a critique of medicine (or of what could potentially be an amazing
treatment), it always saddens me when I read the headline of a medical
breakthrough only to find that we really have no idea how it works. Some day,
we'll understand the architecture of the brain. That day is still not today.

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csantini
Another brain boosting drug ? Are this kind of drugs the next large use
additive ?

[http://npp.neuroscience.wisc.edu/PDF/TowardsResponsibleUseOF...](http://npp.neuroscience.wisc.edu/PDF/TowardsResponsibleUseOFCognitive-
EnhancingDrugsByTheHealthy.pdf)

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rms
Great. It takes a long time though to go from curing something in mice to
curing it in humans. Diabetes is cured in mice.

