Saving Brain Connections by Targeting Synaptic Proteins May Treat Alzheimer's, Study Finds

A new study published in Brain found proteins in nerve cell synapses are abnormal in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, reports Alzheimer's News Today . Swedish researchers believe by analyzing these flaws, scientists could differentiate between those with Alzheimer's and those with Parkinson's-related dementia, and design treatments that prevent or retard cognitive loss by targeting the identified protein. The team studied 32 people who had died from Alzheimer's, Parkinson's disease with dementia, and dementia with Lewy bodies, along with older adults without dementia. They focused on the prefrontal cortex and compared proteins in the brains of people with dementia and healthy people, identifying 10,325 proteins, of which 851 had functions within synapses. Twenty-five proteins were found to be in either higher or lower than normal amounts, and they were strongly connected to the extent of cognitive impairment before death and the rate of cognitive decline. The team observed abnormalities in individuals with Alzheimer's disease, distinguishing them from subjects with dementia caused by Parkinson's. "Our findings suggest that particular pre- and postsynaptic proteins have an important predictive and discriminative molecular fingerprint in neurodegenerative diseases and represent potential targets for early disease intervention, such as synaptic regeneration," says Dr. Erika Bereczki.