AP21651

Science Summary

In a proof of concept study that was performed at the University of California San Francisco researchers performed transplants of new brain cells that reverses memory loss in mice with Alzheimer’s disease. In the study a transplant of inhibitory neuron progenitors into older mice that have Alzheimer’s showed that not only did the cells survive the transplant but they affected the activity and behavior of the mice. (Gladstone Institutes) Furthermore the success of the treatment in older mice corresponds to late adulthood in humans and is particularly important as it would help to identify the potential target age for such treatments in humans. Our textbook states “About 50% to 60% of all cases of Dementia result from Alzheimer’s disease.” (Wood, 190) In the current study, the researchers hoped that by grafting inhibitory neuron progenitors into the hippocampus of aged mice they would be able to combat the effects of Alzheimer’s. With further study and repeated results we can hope to see this treatment as a viable option for current Alzheimer’s sufferers and a possible preventative treatment for those genetically disposed for Alzheimer’s.

References:

Gladstone Institutes. (2014, July 15). Transplantation of new brain cells reverses memory loss in Alzheimer's disease model. ScienceDaily. Retrieved July 19, 2014 from [|www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/07/140715214307.htm]

Wood, Samuel E., Ellen R. Green. Wood, and Denise Roberts. Boyd. //Mastering the World of Psychology//. Fourth ed. Boston: Pearson/Allyn and Bacon, 2011. Print.

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