(Catharine Paddock PhD/ MedicalNewsToday) — Injury to mitochondria — tiny powerhouses inside cells that provide them with energy — triggers events that occur early in Alzheimer’s disease and may offer a promising target for treatment.
So concludes a new study published in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia that shows how oligomeric amyloid beta —a highly toxic protein — disrupts mitochondria.
The study also reveals how a pre-treatment might protect human brain cells from such damage.
“Mitochondria,” says lead author Dr. Diego Mastroeni, an assistant professor at Arizona State University in Tempe, “are the major source of energy in brain cells and deficiencies in energy metabolism have been shown to be one of the earliest events in Alzheimer’s disease pathobiology.”
Alzheimer’s is a devastating disease that destroys brain tissue and robs people of their ability to think, remember, make decisions, socialize, and live independently. (…)