Mariella Bodemeier Loayza Careaga, PhD | Dec 4, 2023 | 6 min read
Haydeh Payami helped uncover the genetic basis of Parkinson’s disease. Now, she hopes to find new ways to treat the disease by studying the gut microbiome.
A new study shows that the brains of Alzheimer’s disease patients have a greater viral load, while another study in mice shows infection leads to amyloid-β build up.
Niacin, a form of vitamin B3 used to treat cardiovascular disease, helps immune cells in the brain fight neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s in mice models, according to recent studies. Researchers hope that human clinical trials will swiftly follow.
The variant causes a buildup of BACE1 protein in axons in cultured neurons and mice. Researchers say it might be time to rethink failed trials that inhibit BACE1 to treat the neurodegenerative disease.