New Alzheimer's Nasal Spray Shown to Reduce Proteins Which Cause the Disease in Mice

According to a study in Nature , Japanese researchers have successfully trialed a nasal spray in mice that targets proteins that cause Alzheimer's disease, reports Good News Network . The spray mitigates dementia-like symptoms in mice while also reducing atrophied brain matter by impeding the tau protein. The vaccine activated the mice's immune systems to produce antibodies that warded off the proteins — an effect that to date has been impossible to replicate in human trials. The mice that received the vaccine were found to have twice as many antibodies than those who had not, and no side effects were observed during or after the trial, for a total of eight months after administration. "Much more research is necessary for the vaccine to be used in humans, but it is an accomplishment that can contribute to the development of a dementia cure," said Kyoto University Professor Haruhisa Inoue.