The treatment of Alzheimer’s looks set to take a massive step forward as researchers at Oxford University have develop a new way of administering drugs to the brain in order to treat the disease. According to Nature Biotechnology, the study could be vital in treating Alzheimer's as well as Parkinson's and Muscular Dystrophy.
A team of University of Oxford researchers successfully switched off a gene in the brains of mice which is connected to Alzheimers. By exploiting tiny particles naturally released by cells, exosomes were able to carry the drug across the normally impermeable blood-brain barrier to where it was needed. While letting oxygen through, the barrier protects bacteria entering the brain and therefore produces problems when it comes to medication. However, if this development is successfully tested in humans, the technique could resolve the difficulty in administering drugs for several neurological diseases.
Lead scientist Dr Matthew Wood of Oxford's Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics said: "These are dramatic and exciting results. It's the first time new 'biological' medicines have been delivered effectively across the blood-brain-barrier to the brain. This is the first time this natural system has been exploited for drug delivery."
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Scientists filled exosomes with a piece of genetic code, siRNA, and injected them back into the mice. This technique reduced the production of the enzyme BACE1 by 60 percent, which is a contributor to Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr Susanne Sorensen, Head of Research at the Alzheimer's Society, said: "In this exciting study, researchers may have overcome a major barrier to the delivery of potential new drugs for many neurological diseases including Alzheimer's.”
"If this delivery method proves safe in humans, then we may see more effective drugs being made available for people with Alzheimer's in the future,” Sorensen added.
A team of University of Oxford researchers successfully switched off a gene in the brains of mice which is connected to Alzheimers. By exploiting tiny particles naturally released by cells, exosomes were able to carry the drug across the normally impermeable blood-brain barrier to where it was needed. While letting oxygen through, the barrier protects bacteria entering the brain and therefore produces problems when it comes to medication. However, if this development is successfully tested in humans, the technique could resolve the difficulty in administering drugs for several neurological diseases.
Lead scientist Dr Matthew Wood of Oxford's Department of Physiology, Anatomy and Genetics said: "These are dramatic and exciting results. It's the first time new 'biological' medicines have been delivered effectively across the blood-brain-barrier to the brain. This is the first time this natural system has been exploited for drug delivery."
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Scientists filled exosomes with a piece of genetic code, siRNA, and injected them back into the mice. This technique reduced the production of the enzyme BACE1 by 60 percent, which is a contributor to Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr Susanne Sorensen, Head of Research at the Alzheimer's Society, said: "In this exciting study, researchers may have overcome a major barrier to the delivery of potential new drugs for many neurological diseases including Alzheimer's.”
"If this delivery method proves safe in humans, then we may see more effective drugs being made available for people with Alzheimer's in the future,” Sorensen added.
