Collapse of cellular skeleton may trigger neuron death
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Scientists at the University of California, Santa Barbara, have opened new doors in the search for what happens to brain cells being destroyed in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.“With dementia, the brain cells, or neurons, that you need for cognitive skills are no longer working properly. Then, they’re not even there anymore because they die. That’s what leads to dementia; you’re losing neuronal capacity,” said senior author Stuart Feinstein, Ph.D., co-director of UC Santa Barbara’s Neuroscience Research Institute.For about 30 years, Feinstein has been studying the protein called “tau” through the use of test tube biochemistry and a variety of cultured cells as models. In healthy conditions, tau is found in the long axons of neurons that connect with their targets, usually far off from the cell body itself. Tau acts to stabilize microtubules – a vital part of the cellular cytoskeleton and necessary for many aspects of neuronal cell structure and function.“We know amyloid beta is a bad guy,” said Feinstein. “Amyloid beta causes disease; amyloid beta causes Alzheimer’s. The question is how does it do it?” It has been known for some time that a tiny peptide named amyloid beta is involved in neuronal cell death and Alzheimer’s disease, although the exact mechanism for how it works has remained unknown. Recently, genetic evidence has shown amyloid beta requires tau to kill neurons; however, what it does to tau has been mysterious. Continue to read: psychcentral.com
Vitamin-E supplements may reduce lung disease risk
Daily supplementation with vitamin E may reduce the risk of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) by about 10 per cent in women over 45, says a study from Cornell University. Read more: nutraingredients-usa.com
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