Scientists at Monash University discovered a promising way to fight Alzheimer's disease. In laboratory experiments, a copper‑containing medicine reduced the build‑up of harmful proteins and helped the test animals remember places better.
Fixing the Brain’s Waste‑Removal System
Alzheimer’s is linked to a protein called amyloid‑beta that piles up in the brain. Normally, the brain sends this protein out through a barrier called the blood‑brain barrier. Tiny pumps named P‑gp help move the waste into the bloodstream.
In people with Alzheimer’s, these pumps work poorly, so waste stays inside the brain and damages cells.
In the new study, the copper drug increased the number of P‑gp pumps by about 24 %. This boost helped clear amyloid‑beta and improved learning ability.
Over a period of 56 days, the treatment lowered amyloid‑beta by roughly 42 % and made spatial learning about 44 % better.
Drug Already Tested for Other Brain Disorders
The copper compound, called Cu(ATSM), has anti‑inflammatory and protective effects on nerve cells. It is already being tested in humans for Parkinson’s disease and ALS.
Because cutting down amyloid‑beta is known to help brain function, the researchers say the results support trying this drug in early‑stage Alzheimer’s patients.
How the Brain Gets Rid of the Protein
Even though the drug lowered amyloid‑beta, scientists are still figuring out the exact route the protein takes out of the brain after the barrier is fixed.
The team also thinks the medicine might make microglia – the brain’s own immune cells – more active. Active microglia can eat and break down the toxic plaques.
Future work will track the exact pathways that move the waste from the brain into the blood.
Why New Treatments Are Needed
Dementia, including Alzheimer’s, is a growing health problem worldwide. In Australia, it now causes more deaths than heart disease.
As the population ages, finding medicines that slow or stop memory loss is becoming more urgent.