Protein discovery ‘could unlock new Alzheimer’s discoveries’

Researchers at the University of Leeds have identified a specific protein which may be responsible for the effects of Alzheimer's disease on the brain.

A new study from the university's Faculty of Biological Sciences has found that APP695 is primarily responsible for the accumulation of amyloid-beta peptide, which is toxic to nerve cells and leads to neurological degeneration.

Although it has been well-established that the APP protein caused this effect, it was not previously known that it could be isolated to one specific type of APP, meaning that prior studies may have been analysing too broad a field.

The discovery will allow future research to be more precisely targeted, which could open up new avenues for the development of a potential Alzheimer's cure.

Professor Tony Turner from Leeds' Faculty of Biological Sciences said: "Research into amyloid beta peptide has been going on for more than 20 years and while treatments have made it to clinical trials, nothing has proved truly effective against this disease."

Last month, Leeds university researchers discovered that a specific type of scorpion venom could be utilised as a means of preventing heart bypass graft failures.