‘Brain Pill’ Could Treat Alzheimer’s…or Result in ‘Super Human Memory’
- Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:33pm by
Liz Klimas
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With the Alzheimer’s Association estimating that 5.4 million Americans are living with the disease and that the death rate of it has risen 66 percent since 2000, the race for finding a cure or better treatment is on. According to research out of Baylor University, it may not be too far away. In fact, it could be as easy as taking a pill.
The Vancouver Sun reports that Mauro Costa-Mattioli, a neuroscientist and research lead for the project, recently found that a molecule in the brain of mice that was known to signal viral infections by causing a stress response, causes a similar response in patients with Alzheimer’s. Suppressing this molecule, researchers found, improved memory in the mice:
PKR is an immune molecule previously known to act as a signal to the brain of viral infections, Costa-Mattioli said.
“We recognize that PKR plays a dual role, one in regulating simple everyday processes like the way neurons talk to each other (for) memory, but also has a stress response,” said John Bell, a senior scientist at the Ottawa Hospital Research Institute who also contributed to the study.
A virus is one form of stress that triggers PKR, but Alzheimer‘s patients’ brains also experience PKR-releasing stress, said Bell, whose cancer research led him to create PKR-deficient mice which he shared with Costa-Mattioli’s lab.
Finding that gamma interferon could suppress the PKR molecule and result in increased communication between neurons led the researchers to create a drug to inhibit the molecule. Kresimir Krnjevic, a professor emeritus in neurophysiology at McGil University and contributor to the study, told the Sun that this was the first time improved memory had been seen from the association between PKR and gamma interferon. According to the Sun, the team injected this inhibitor into mice stomachs with success, shedding positive light the potential for an ingestable drug.
The researchers say that a pill version for clinical trials of the suppressor is at least a few years away, depending on funding and lab research. Costa-Mattioli told the Sun that since even healthy people could take the pill and develop a “superhuman memory”, although that‘s not the research’s aim
In 2011, Alzheimer’s was named the sixth leading cause of death in the United States — the only one among the top 10 that is not preventable — according to the Alzheimer’s Association.
[H/T Yahoo News]
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Comments (69)
Skee
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:43pmThe Alzheimer pill will indirectly cure all other diseases.
Report Post »Sweet, I’ll keep holding my breath.
Treaty
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:56pmI need some of dat…
Report Post »HKS
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:08pmMaybe everybody need some of dat.
Report Post »Patrick Henry II
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:18pmRemembering every day of your life clear back to 6 months old has its drawbacks.
Report Post »dragon1969
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:44pmDid anyone see Planet of the Apes, Rise of the Apes??????? dum dum dummmmmmmmmmmmm…..
Report Post »shift
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 5:47pmAnd just like a million other supposed break throughs, this will be the last you hear of it.
Report Post »V-MAN MACE
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 6:33pmI know what could prevent Alzheimer’s and other neurological diseases…
STOP SPRAYING HEAVY METALS ON US IN CHEMTRAILS.
Report Post »Poggle The Stick
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 9:24pmChemical Trails? HAH! Conspiracy Theorist!
All planes (and cars) emit Carbon Dioxide or waste from their engines. If they didn’t, engines wouldn’t work right.
Besides, I’m a 13 yr. old in school doing very well, and if this is because of ChemTrails, LET ME STAND BEHIND A PLANE ENGINE FOR A FEW MINUTES!
Report Post »V-MAN MACE
Posted on December 21, 2011 at 8:43amI wouldn’t expect a 13 yr old to understand, so let me clarify for you.
Yelling “conspiracy theorist” isn’t the end all, be all for debating. It’s called dodging. Wanna be a good debater? Use facts and deductive logic.
Research what heavy metals does to the human body, especially Aluminum in the brain. Then you can look at the Mainstream News articles proving that Chemtrails are real, because the government already admitted it after denying it for decades, and now they just say “So? We’re doing Experiments…” as if there’s nothing to see here, move along.
http://www.drudge.com/archive/119763/obama-admits-chemtrails
They’ve already been doing this for decades, and now they admit it.
You do not want to sit behind a plane engine and inhale deeply. This pill could “treat” (not cure) Alzheimer’s and improve memory, but what I‘m saying is we ought to prevent diseases like Alzheimer’s by NOT spraying heavy metals on us in Chemtrails.
Report Post »coffeenomics
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:41pmhttp://ahha.org/Alzheimers.htm
They will want profits off the new drug and they better hurray before anyone finds out about the Niacinamide research…see above! That’s just another example of why big government progressives want to pass the Dietary Supplement Labeling Act. It would be a disaster!!
Report Post »Detroit paperboy
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:38pmFrankly, theres some stuff i would like to forget ; ))
Report Post »thegreatcarnac
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:36pmMy wife already has a super-memory….I shudder to think what else she would remember if she took that pill.
Report Post »AnAmerican111
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:31pmNot to be funny as my father is suffering from Alzheimers!………
But are they close to a cure for LIBERALISM also?
…before it destroys America?
It would be nice to see both Alzheimers and LIBERALISM go away!
Report Post »piper60
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 4:20pmGood point.
Report Post »Darmok and Jalad at Tanagra
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:31pmNow, if I could only remember to take my pills.
Report Post »JRHelgeson
Posted on December 21, 2011 at 12:26pmDo you remember the last time you were tested for Alzheimer’s?
Report Post »Gary Fishaholic
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:31pmGreat they could try it on me been looking for a Perry Pill.
I think what was I talking about?
Report Post »tharpdevenport
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:20pmIsn’t the main problem they have to remember to take it?
Does this mean grandma will be really good at finding cheese and working her way through mazes?
Report Post »leonardoverse
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:16pmBeen praying for something like this and although trials are years away I can still hope that it will happen sooner than later….for my dad.
Report Post »ALL4FREEDOM
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 8:27pmFind the January 2012 edition of Life Extension magazine, and read the publisher’s editorial, “As We See It”. The Life Extension Foundation offers an OTC form of absorbable magnesium that may help. Their website is http://www.lef.org.
Report Post »SpaceCoyote
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:11pmSounds great but scares me. I think the bodies ability to ID a viral intrusion is kinda needed. That is if you wish to have your immune system do it’s job. Simply virus that most people have an immunity to may travel the body uncheck. The stress signals tell the protiens to get to work.
Report Post »lukerw
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:09pmAh… Food for Liberals :)
Report Post »db321
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:14pmDon’t tell anybody, the Liberals already think they are smarter than everyone else – he who thinks they are wise becomes a fool.
Report Post »SimpleTruths
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:20pmYou really have to throw slings and arrows at everything? You must be a very frustrated, hateful person.
Report Post »Cesium
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:37pmOh luke?? and who is going to cure alzheimers? god? You would prefer a story of someone falling of a 4 story balcony and surviving as long as it ignores the stories of the majority who fall 4 stories and die. Miracle as far as your concerned! ie food for conservatives.
Report Post »dnewton
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:39pmThis might be why they make up history rather than try to learn it.
Report Post »solaveritas
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:07pmA developed drug will never see the light of day. “The powers that be” wouldn’t dare allow the masses to remember their broken promises, or be smart enough to throw them out of office.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:14pmWe already do remember their broken promises.
And raw memory storage does not equal the sum of intelligence.
Report Post »Hickory
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:04pmIt would have to taken as an enema to do much good for most Democrats.
Report Post »unblind
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:59pmJust watched the movie “Limitless” last night. Funny how much it parallels what it could mean to have “superhuman memory.” And only means taking a pill…
Report Post »CLEttinger
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:59pmIntresting, but I’d be hesitant to try it, If you take it and it suppresses the PKR, do you have a natural suppressant that will stop working? Then if you have to stop taking it you could have a worse memory than when you started taking it. Sounds like it could be a life time commiment to a drug.
Report Post »Rational Man
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:58pmBig drug companies always have a pill to cure everything. A year down the road and you start seeing the commercials on TV for lawyers offering to file a lawsuit against the pill company on your behalf for the irreparable damage done to your body, or death.
At least 95% of this stuff is just snake oil sold to people by snake oil salesmen.
Report Post »Firebrand
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:09pmThat’s not true. It’s very difficult to discover all the side effects for a drug. Clinical trials only sample a small number of people (percentage wise). There is always going to be at least one person that has an ill effect. No drug is 100% safe for 100% of all people. The same is true for milk, cheese, wheat, peanuts, shellfish…etc. The idea is that if it has the potential to treat 95% of people that need it without ill effects, then it is a viable option for treatment. The question is whether or not it does more good than harm.
Report Post »Howsit
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:55pmSeems like it “should” be the question but it falls apart when the small % hire a lawyer and force the drug off the market.
Report Post »sillyfreshness
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:57pmWe owe much of the results of this study to that Jewish ran Mtv which, for 20 year now, has been showing degenerate behavior on their reality shows. That combined with Jersey Shore that glorifies more degenerate behavior is what you get. Young people look up to these idiots almost like gods. They want to copy and emulate them. When you’re young like that, you don’t realize that these reality actors are just a flash in the pan. I know because I remember when I was young how I thought bands like Motley Crue, Poison, Bon Jovi, G&R, etc. would be around forever. I remember how my classmates and I idolized those freaks. Nothing has done more to destroy this country than TV. We are becoming more and more like Rome everyday. TV is a double edged sword. It can be educational and great for society, or it can be taken over by liberal Jews like Mtv and Viacom who spew out leftist propaganda (like glorifying gays in their shows). Just look up who runs those companies and you’ll see Goldberg, Pearl, Fine, Greene, Kahn, Cohen, and a host of other Jewish last names. That‘s why I don’t let Israel determine who I vote for. They are too busy over in this country spewing out Bolshevik propaganda.
VigilantGuardShark
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:02pmWhat the Hell does your rant have to do with the article?
Report Post »sillyfreshness
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:56pmThink how cool that would be to have a superhuman memory. College would become a breeze and we could actually get more engineers, doctors, scientists, etc.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:04pmConsider however that memory is just that, memory, and does not involve higher analytical functions or reasoning. Put another way, memory is like having a given size hard drive, and a “super human” memory would be like having a hard drive larger than anybody else’s. But the CPU is where the action is as far as things like engineering, medicine, science are concerned. Sure you need a given amount of retention and memory, but there‘s a point where it doesn’t really help with things like creativity, math ability, logic, etc. See my post below about memory and chimpanzees.
Report Post »plastinoid
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:56pmJust don’t give it to Chimps………I’ve seen what it does, and it is not pretty.
Report Post »Gonzo
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 3:25pmYou just threw me a big fat hanging curveball over the plate. I want to swing at it soooo bad…but i won’t.
Report Post »3monkeysmomma
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:53pmMy Granny lingered and slowly died from Alz. Now I see signs of it beginning in my Mom. I hope this is for real, because I‘m certain I’m next!
Report Post »jedi.kep
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:51pmPinkie and the Brain!
Report Post »netmail
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:47pmI’d love to try this drug. Getting malaria in the Philippines during the Viet Nam war era, with a temperature that peaked at 107, gave me permanent short term memory loss that has really loused up my life. Some herbs help considerably but this sounds like a life changer. Hurry up already.
Report Post »Locked
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:42pmMy grandmother is suffering from alzheimers. In the past three years she’s gone from a fully functional adult to a woman scared of leaving her house who cannot remember her own children on the bad days (she won’t remember her grandkids for more than 5 minutes after you remind her; I’m frequently taken for my uncle when I visit). Any treatment would be welcome.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:50pmI’m sorry to hear that Locked, my sympaties.
I hope this study holds real life potential for treating Alzheimer’s Disease.
The “super human memory” thing though, might be a bad idea. We have less memory retention than the average chimpanzee, studies have consistently demonstrated this. I strongly suspect that our hyper-advanced neuroprocessing/analytical thinking pathways and extreme abstracting abilities are the trade off we made for a reduction in memory. Pumping up memory may well end up reducing us to idiot savants who can remember every detail of a painting, but who are left incapable of being able to conceive of *how* to paint that painting.
Just musing out loud.
Report Post »GhostOfJefferson
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:55pmSympathies.
Typo-Man To The Rescue!
Report Post »Firebrand
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 2:05pmUnfortunately, any drug that is to come out of this would have to have FDA approval and vetting. I helped conduct research on B-amyloids a couple years ago. The average time for a drug to go from post research conception (human R&D start phase) to pharmacy shelves is 19 years.
I’m sorry to hear about your Gram. I lost a great grandmother to the disease. Its very hard to watch family go through it.
Report Post »AnAppealToGod
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:41pmGreat, so now we can remember that communism and socialism doesn’t work right?
Report Post »expatinontariocanada
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:41pmGram died from it. Mom’s in end stage 7. I have more of their genes than my Dad’s so for me and my kids, and all others inflicted with this horrible disease and potential legacy, I pray this works and is not too long in coming.
Report Post »DGeezy11
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:39pmPlanet of the Apes anyone…
Report Post »netmail
Posted on December 20, 2011 at 1:56pmThe animated apes were better actors than the humans in that movie. Give real apes the pill and let them have Hollywood. They’ll do a better job.
Report Post »