Imbalances in Toxic and Protective RNAs Linked to Alzheimer's

Discovery opens new avenues for treatment, with potential to halt or delay the disease by stabilizing or increasing protective short RNAs.

A groundbreaking study reveals that imbalances in toxic and protective RNA strands play a critical role in Alzheimer’s disease, offering new avenues for treatment focused on RNA interference.
Short strands of toxic RNAs contribute to brain cell death and DNA damage in Alzheimer’s and aged brains, while protective RNAs decrease during aging, which may allow Alzheimer’s to develop.
SuperAgers, individuals aged 80 and older with a memory capacity of individuals 20 to 30 years younger, have higher amounts of protective short RNA strands in their brain cells.
The study suggests that stabilizing or increasing the amount of protective short RNAs in the brain could be an entirely new approach to halt or delay Alzheimer’s or neurodegeneration in general.
The next step in the research is to determine the exact contribution of toxic sRNAs to the cell death seen in Alzheimer’s and screen for better compounds that would selectively increase the level of protective sRNAs or block the action of the toxic ones.