[Source: ScienceDaily] – Barrow Neurological Institute researchers have identified a novel receptor in the brain that is extremely sensitive to beta-amyloid peptide (AB) and may play a key role in early stages of Alzheimer’s disease.
Published in the Journal of Neuroscience, the research lead by Jie Wu, MD, PhD, has identified a new candidate for therapeutic intervention in Alzheimer’s.
The novel receptor was found in the basal forebrain, an area of the brain that plays a critical role in memory and learning and is one of the first areas of the brain to degenerate with Alzheimer’s. That degeneration is associated with losses of the chemical messenger, acetylcholine, and some of the molecules that translate acetylcholine’s messages, called nicotinic receptors. The forming of large aggregates or plaques of AB also is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. While these two features have been under examination in Alzheimer’s research, it is not clear how they interrelate.
For more information: New Brain Receptor Identified as Possible Target For Alzheimer’s Treatment