

Skin cancer drug reverses Alzheimer's in mice - jsherry
http://www.cnn.com/2012/02/09/health/us-cancer-drug-alzheimers/index.html

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rsheridan6
Kind of interesting related snippet from July 2011:

>The morning concluded with a talk by Gary Landreth from Case Western Reserve
University, Cleveland, Ohio. Landreth has worked for several years to identify
ApoE-directed therapeutics. As one of the genes involved in cholesterol
homeostasis, ApoE is regulated transcriptionally by PPARγ and liver X
receptors, which both form heterodimers with the retinoid X receptor (RXR).
Working with APP transgenic mice, Landreth found that an RXR agonist,
bexarotene, induces brain ApoE quickly and robustly. This induction precedes a
rapid decline in brain amyloid, an increase in plaque-clearing microglia, and
improvements in cognitive performance. Landreth noted that bexarotene is an
FDA-approved chemotherapeutic that readily crosses the blood-brain barrier and
has minimal side effects, most of which are associated with its action on
lipid homeostasis. Hence, this drug minimally represents a test of the role of
Aβ in AD and, maximally, may represent an AD therapeutic, he suggested. The
presentation elicited a discussion of the utility of the drug in
ApoE4-positive individuals, i.e., if ApoE4 represents a toxic gain of
function, then bexarotene-induced increases in ApoE4 may exacerbate AD.
Landreth noted that the drug has been in use for roughly a decade without
reports of cognitive deficits as a side effect.

From <http://www.alzforum.org/new/detail.asp?id=2850>

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nubela
A lot of things reverses shit in mice. They do nothing for humans though.
TL;DR: Take it easy, it could be something, this is a good first step. But
thats just that.

