Study suggests immune cells outside brain may drive Alzheimer's damage
A new study suggests that the immune system outside the brain could be driving some of the damage seen in Alzheimer's disease.
Researchers discovered that special immune cells called dendritic cells, found in lymph nodes, activate T cells, which then build up in the brain and cause trouble.
This opens up fresh possibilities for treatments that target these immune triggers, not just the brain itself.
Mouse experiments show possible Alzheimer's delay
In mouse experiments, removing these dendritic cells led to fewer T cells in the brain, and mice kept their memory sharp even with ongoing signs of Alzheimer's.
Since current drugs struggle to reach the brain, targeting immune activity elsewhere could make future treatments easier and safer.
As lead author Hao Hu, a postdoctoral fellow at WashU, put it, this approach might "It might not completely reverse the disease, but it could delay it significantly," said Hao Hu.