Brazilian researchers at UFABC have made a breakthrough in treating Alzheimer’s disease. They’ve developed a new chemical compound that targets and degrades beta-amyloid plaques, a hallmark of the disease. The compound shows promise in minimizing memory loss and has been found safe and effective in animal experiments.
According to Giselle Cerchiaro, professor at UFABC’s Center for Natural and Human Sciences, regulating copper homeostasis is key to treating Alzheimer’s. The new compound acts as a copper chelator, binding to excess copper in beta-amyloid plaques and facilitating their degradation.
The research has been published in the journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience and demonstrates that the compound is not only effective but also easy to synthesize. It reduced neuroinflammation, oxidative stress, and restored copper balance in the hippocampus, a region responsible for memory.
This breakthrough offers a new avenue of treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, which affects an estimated 50 million people worldwide. The researchers plan to translate their findings into human clinical trials, making this compound a promising development in the fight against Alzheimer’s.
Source: https://www.tun.com/home/new-chemical-compound-shows-promise-in-treating-alzheimers-disease