Blood flow 'key to Alzheimer's treatment'

Research into the blood flow difficulties involved in Alzheimer's disease could lead to a new treatment for the condition, researchers predict.

Scientists from the University of Bristol, supported by the Alzheimer's Research Trust, found marked abnormalities in blood regulation in Alzheimer's patients.

The investigators examined an enzyme that helps to control blood flow and the leakiness of blood vessel walls and found increased activity in those with Alzheimer's.

Despite the fact that these symptoms are thought to be an effect rather than a cause of the disease, study leaders are hoping that using drugs to alleviate this could improve brain function.

Professor Seth Love, one of the researchers said that problems with the function of blood vessels in the brain have not been studied as well as other parts of Alzheimer's.

"These findings give us hope for future research – there are already drugs available that might prove beneficial, and we should look to trial them," he said.

Meanwhile, researchers from the University of Medicine in St Louis have found that Alzheimer's disease may not be due to the build up of plaques in the brain but the slow clearance of them.

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