Geneticists looking into Alzheimer's - San Angelo Standard Times

Alzheimer’s disease is often a powerful mixture of good news and bad news. The bad news too long has been the definition of the disease, itself, that “Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive, neurodegenerative disorder that is fatal, and has no prevention methods and no cure. Available drugs only marginally affect disease severity, making Alzheimer’s disease effectively untreatable.”

Some good news has emerged with the launch of the International Genomics of Alzheimer’s Project.

The project is a joint effort of the world’s four leading genetic researchers: Institute Pasteur de Lille and Lille University in France; University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and Boston University in the United States; and Cardiff University in the United Kingdom.

“Identification of genes that contribute to Alzheimer’s risk and that influence the progression of the disease will help lead us to the cause of the disease, identify proteins and other new targets for drug development, and provide genetic methods for determining which people are at greatest risk for Alzheimer’s disease when preventative measures become available,” said Dr. Gerard Schellenberg, leader of the Alzheimer’s disease Genetic Consortium at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

The other leaders and Schellenberg are working together for the first time in IGAP.

For more information on the leaders, funding by the Alzheimer’s Association of the genetics project and progress of the work now, go to alz.org, the national Alzheimer’s Association website.

As Alzheimer’s disease cases mushroom and costs soar out of control, the association’s urgent mission is to:

Eliminate Alzheimer’s disease through the advancement of research;

Provide and enhance care and support for all affected; and

Reduce the risk of dementia through the promotion of brain health.

Our vision is a world without Alzheimer’s.

For more information about your local Alzheimer’s Association San Angelo all-volunteer branch, contact 438 Houston Harte, San Angelo, TX 76903 or 325 653-1724