A drug that has been used for years to treat seizures is showing promise as a potential avenue. Prevention of Alzheimer’s diseasenew research suggests.
Levetiracetam, an antiepileptic drug, was first approved by the FDA under the brand name Keppra in November 1999 for the treatment of partial-onset seizures in adults. Approval was later extended to children and other types of seizures.
Researchers at Northwestern University recently discovered that levetiracetam prevents the formation of toxic amyloid beta peptide, a small protein fragment in the brain commonly found in Alzheimer’s patients.
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The drug was found to prevent the formation of amyloid beta-42 in both animal models and cultured human neurons, according to research published in Science Translational Medicine.
This effect was also observed in postmortem human brain tissue taken from patients with Down syndrome, who are at high risk for Down syndrome. alzheimer’s disease.
“Many of the Alzheimer’s disease drugs currently on the market, such as lecanemab and donanemab, are approved to clear existing amyloid plaques, but we have identified amyloid-β42 peptide and this mechanism that prevents amyloid plaque formation,” corresponding author Jeffrey Sabas, associate professor of behavioral neurology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, said in a press release.
“Our new results reveal new biology and also open the door to new drug targets.”
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While young, the brain is able to successfully avoid pathways that produce toxic amyloid beta 42 protein. aging process Savas points out that this ability gradually weakens.
“This doesn’t indicate disease; it’s just part of aging. But in a brain that develops Alzheimer’s disease, too many neurons go wrong, and that’s when amyloid beta-42 is produced,” he said.
It causes tau (“tangles”), abnormal protein clumps within brain neurons, which can cause cells to die. brain cellswhich causes neuroinflammation and causes dementia.
For levetiracetam to work as an Alzheimer’s disease blocker, high-risk patients need to start taking it “very early,” Savas said. It can take up to 20 years for elevated amyloid beta-42 levels to be detected.
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“If you already have dementia, you can’t tolerate this because your brain has already gone through a lot of irreversible changes and is going through a lot of changes.” cell death” the researchers pointed out.
The researchers also looked closely at previous human clinical data to see if people with Alzheimer’s disease were taking the drug. antiepileptic drug Cognitive function declined more slowly. They reported that patients in that category had a “significant delay” in the time between cognitive decline and death compared with patients not taking the drug.
“Although the magnitude of the change was small (on a multi-year scale), this analysis supports a positive effect of levetiracetam in slowing the progression of Alzheimer’s disease,” Sabas said.
Looking ahead, Sabas said the research team aims to find people who have the genetic form of Alzheimer’s disease and are willing to participate in testing.
This study had several limitations, including its reliance on: animal models It uses cultured cells and has not been tested in humans.
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This study is observational in nature, so it cannot be proven that medicine The researchers found that it caused the prevention of harmful brain proteins.
Zavaz noted that levetiracetam is “not perfect” and warned that it breaks down very quickly in the body.
The research team is now working on a “better version” that lasts longer in the body and “better targets the mechanisms that prevent plaque formation.”
Commonly reported side effects of this drug include drowsiness, weakness, dizziness, irritability, headache, loss of appetite, and nasal congestion.
It has also been associated with potential mood and behavioral changes, including anxiety, depression, agitation, and aggression, according to prescribing information. In rare cases, this can lead to: severe allergic reactionskin reactions, blood disorders, and suicidal thoughts.
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Funding for this study was provided by the National Institutes of Health and the Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment Fund.
Fox News Digital has reached out to drug companies and researchers for comment.
