TGen study identifies compounds that could slow down Alzheimer's disease

Naturally occurring plant alkaloids could fend off potential loss of memory

2011-05-27

(Press-News.org) PHOENIX, Ariz. — May 26, 2011 — A family of naturally occurring plant compounds could help prevent or delay memory loss associated with Alzheimer's disease, according to a new study by the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen).

Beta-carboline alkaloids could potentially be used in therapeutic drugs to stop, or at least slow down, the progressively debilitating effects of Alzheimer's, according to the study published recently in the scientific journal Public Library of Science (PLoS) One.

One of these alkaloids, called harmine, inhibits a protein known as DYRK1A, which has been implicated by this and other studies in the formation tau phosphorylation. This process dismantles the connections between brain cells, or neurons, and has been linked in past TGen studies to Alzheimer's disease.

Tau is a protein critical to the formation of the microtubule bridges in neurons. These bridges support the synaptic connections that, like computer circuits, allow brain cells to communicate with each other.

"Pharmacological inhibition of DYRK1A through the use of beta-carboline alkaloids may provide an opportunity to intervene therapeutically to alter the onset or progression of tau pathology in Alzheimer's disease," said Dr. Travis Dunckley, Head of TGen's Neurodegenerative Research Unit, and the study's senior author.

Beta-carboline alkaloids are found in a number of medicinal plants. They have antioxidant properties, and have been shown to protect brain cells from excessive stimulation of neurotransmitters. "(They) are natural occurring compounds in some plant species that affect multiple central nervous system targets," the study said.

Under normal circumstances, proteins regulate tau by adding phosphates. This process of tau phosphorylation enables connections between brain cells to unbind and bind again, allowing neurons to connect and reconnect with other brain cells. However, this process can go awry, allowing the formation of neurofibrillary tangles, one of the signature indicators of Alzheimer's.

In this study, laboratory tests showed that harmine, and several other beta-carboline alkaloids, "potently reduced'' the expression of three forms of phosphorylated tau, and inhibited the ability of DYRK1A to phosphorylate tau protein at multiple genetic sites associated with tau pathology.

"These results suggest that this class of compounds warrant further investigation as candidate tau-based therapeutics to alter the onset or progression of tau dysfunction and pathology in Alzheimer's disease," Dr. Dunckley said.

The Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium, the National Institute on Aging, and the Louis Charitable Trust funded the study. The Consortium is funded in part by the Arizona Legislature through the Arizona Department of Health Services, which supported a portion of the study. Members of the Consortium also participated in the study. MediProPharma Inc. supported portions of the study.

### PLoS is a non-profit organization of scientists and physicians committed to making the world's scientific and medical literature a freely available public resource.

About the Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium The Arizona Alzheimer's Consortium is a 501(c)(3) organization that includes the state-supported Arizona Alzheimer's Research Center (AARC), the National Institute on Aging (NIA)-funded Arizona Disease Core Center (Arizona ADCC), and independently funded research programs. Its seven member institutions include: Arizona State University, Barrow Neurological Institute, Mayo Clinic Arizona, Banner Sun Health Research Institute, the Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen), the University of Arizona, and Banner Alzheimer's Institute. Its three affiliated institutions include Banner Good Samaritan Medical Center, the Southern Arizona Veterans Administration Health Care System and the University Physician's Hospital at Kino. For more information, including the consortium's upcoming scientific conference, go to: www.azalz.org.

About TGen The Translational Genomics Research Institute (TGen) is a Phoenix, Arizona-based non-profit organization dedicated to conducting groundbreaking research with life changing results. Research at TGen is focused on helping patients with diseases such as cancer, neurological disorders and diabetes. TGen is on the cutting edge of translational research where investigators are able to unravel the genetic components of common and complex diseases. Working with collaborators in the scientific and medical communities, TGen believes it can make a substantial contribution to the efficiency and effectiveness of the translational process. TGen is affiliated with the Van Andel Research Institute in Grand Rapids, Michigan. For more information, visit: www.tgen.org.

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

Common transplant drug inhibits breast cancer growth, UNC laboratory study shows

2011-05-27

Tacrolimus, a drug that is commonly used to prevent organ transplantation rejection, inhibits breast cancer growth in pre-clinical studies. The finding from UNC scientists was reported in the May 26th PLoS ONE. Nancy Klauber-DeMore, MD, associate professor of surgery, said, " We now have a rationale for performing human clinical trials to determine if Tacrolimus reduces breast cancer growth in humans. Since Tacrolimus is already an FDA-approved drug, the safety and toxicity profile is known, which means that Tacrolimus could potentially go directly into a later stage ...

Bruce Marks to Speak at US-Russia Business Council Forum in London

2011-05-27

Leading law firm, Marks & Sokolov, is pleased to announce Managing Director, Bruce S. Marks, will moderate a prestigious panel at the 3rd US Russia Business Council Legal Forum. A world leader in US, Russian and Ukrainian law and litigation, Bruce S. Marks brings a unique and important perspective to the forum. Taking place in London on June 9th, 2011, the forum will gather the world's leading practitioners in US Russian commercial legal matters. Bruce S. Marks will moderate a panel entitled 'Legal Reform and the Courts in Russia'. It's more than two years since ...

Current test-based incentive programs have not consistently raised

2011-05-27

WASHINGTON — Despite being used for several decades, test-based incentives have not consistently generated positive effects on student achievement, says a new report from the National Research Council. The report examines evidence on incentive programs, which impose sanctions or offer rewards for students, teachers, or schools on the basis of students' test performance. Federal and state governments have increasingly relied on incentives in recent decades as a way to raise accountability in public education and in the hope of driving improvements in achievement. School-level ...

People with body-image disorders process 'big picture' visual information abnormally

2011-05-27

People suffering from body dysmorphic disorder, or BDD — a severe mental illness characterized by debilitating misperceptions that one appears disfigured and ugly — process visual information abnormally, even when looking at inanimate objects, according to a new UCLA study. First author Dr. Jamie Feusner, a UCLA assistant professor of psychiatry, and colleagues found that patients with the disorder have less brain activity when processing holistic visual elements that provide the "big picture," regardless of whether that picture is a face or an object. The research ...

5 new hot spots where medicine and technology will converge

2011-05-27

Medicine and technology are converging in patient care at a faster pace than most people realize. Space age advancements from point-of-care health technologies like telemedicine to medical robots performing surgery are fast becoming commonplace in many hospitals. What's next? Ask NJIT Distinguished Professor Atam Dhawan, an electrical engineer and associate dean of the NJIT Albert Dorman Honors College, chair of the the IEEE emerging technology committee, and workshop chair for the upcoming 33rd IEEE Engineering in Medicine and Biology Society (EMBS) Annual International ...

Pan American Metals Pleased to Announce Gold and Silver Once Again the 'Safe Haven' Choice

2011-05-27

Market reports May 24 showed that gold and silver had regained their standing as 'safe haven' investments, with gold remaining comfortably above the $1500 an ounce benchmark, closing the day at $1523, the highest price for three weeks. Silver has also bounced back to close, May 24, at $36.12. Mounting concerns over European debt following rumors of a Greek default helped drive investors back toward the 'safety net' of precious metals. The UK, Italy, Spain and Portugal were causing concern as they faced reduced credit ratings and, in the case of Spain, a change of government. ...

Green and lean: Secreting bacteria eliminate cost barriers for renewable biofuel production

2011-05-27

TEMPE, Ariz.- A Biodesign Institute at Arizona State University research team has developed a process that removes a key obstacle to producing low-cost, renewable biofuels from bacteria. The team has reprogrammed photosynthetic microbes to secrete high-energy fats, making byproduct recovery and conversion to biofuels easier and potentially more commercially viable. "The real costs involved in any biofuel production are harvesting the goodies and turning them into fuel," said Roy Curtiss, of the Institute's Center for Infectious Diseases and Vaccinology and professor ...

LateRooms.com - An Evening with the Legendary John Cleese Comes to Liverpool

2011-05-27

Liverpool welcomes An Evening with the Legendary John Cleese to the Empire Theatre at the end of the month. Few comedians can claim to have had such a huge impact on the British canon of comedy as Cleese, who made his name in Monty Python's Flying Circus and Fawlty Towers. With scenes like the 'Dead Parrot Sketch' and his hilarious silly walks, the 71-year-old has become a national treasure. People heading to the show in Liverpool on May 31st can expect to enjoy his trademark sense of humour combined with insight into his long and successful career. Speaking ...

Cancer cells accelerate aging and inflammation in the body to drive tumor growth

2011-05-27

PHILADELPHIA— Researchers at the Kimmel Cancer Center at Jefferson have shed new light on the longstanding conundrum about what makes a tumor grow—and how to make it stop. Interestingly, cancer cells accelerate the aging of nearby connective tissue cells to cause inflammation, which ultimately provides "fuel" for the tumor to grow and even metastasize. This revealing symbiotic process, which is similar to how muscle and brain cells communicate with the body, could prove useful for developing new drugs to prevent and treat cancers. In this simple model, our bodies provide ...

Rendezvous with an asteroid

2011-05-27

TEMPE, Ariz. – A newly announced NASA mission to collect a sample of an asteroid and return it to Earth will include an instrument built at Arizona State University's School of Earth and Space Exploration (SESE). The ASU instrument will analyze long-wavelength infrared light emitted from the asteroid to map the minerals on its surface. The device is a modified version of the highly successful miniature infrared spectrometers carried on Spirit and Opportunity, NASA's twin Mars Exploration Rovers. The new asteroid sample-return mission is called OSIRIS-REx, an acronym standing ...

TGen study identifies compounds that could slow down Alzheimer's disease

ELSE PRESS RELEASES FROM THIS DATE:

LAST 30 PRESS RELEASES: