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Antioxidants Decrease Disease In Fruit Fly Model Of Alzheimer's Disease

Date:
December 15, 2006
Source:
Journal of Clinical Investigation
Summary:
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder in which brain cells damaged by naturally occurring chemicals known as reactive oxygen species have been observed. Whether this oxidative damage causes neurodegeneration or is a consequence of it has not been previously determined. A study now indicates that oxidative damage contributes to neurodegeneration in a Drosophila model of disorders such as AD, suggesting that targeting antioxidant pathways might provide a new approach for treating individuals with AD.
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Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of a number of neurodegenerative disorders in which brain cells damaged by naturally occurring chemicals known as reactive oxygen species (ROS) have been observed. However, whether this oxidative damage causes neurodegeneration or is a consequence of it has not been previously determined.

A study appearing online on December 14, in advance of publication in the January print issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation, indicates that oxidative damage is a factor contributing to neurodegeneration in a Drosophila model of neurodegenerative disorders such as AD.

Mel Feany and colleagues from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School assessed neuron cell death in Drosophila expressing a neurodegenerative disease--associated form of the human protein tau. The number of dying neurons was increased if these insects were also genetically modified to have high levels of ROS.

By contrast, if the insects were treated with the antioxidant vitamin E they had decreased numbers of dying neurons. This demonstration that oxidative stress contributes to neurodegeneration in this model of AD suggests that targeting antioxidant pathways might provide a new approach for treating individuals with AD and other related neurodegenerative disorders.


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Materials provided by Journal of Clinical Investigation. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


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Journal of Clinical Investigation. "Antioxidants Decrease Disease In Fruit Fly Model Of Alzheimer's Disease." ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 15 December 2006. <www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/12/061215091114.htm>.
Journal of Clinical Investigation. (2006, December 15). Antioxidants Decrease Disease In Fruit Fly Model Of Alzheimer's Disease. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 7, 2024 from www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/12/061215091114.htm
Journal of Clinical Investigation. "Antioxidants Decrease Disease In Fruit Fly Model Of Alzheimer's Disease." ScienceDaily. www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2006/12/061215091114.htm (accessed December 7, 2024).

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