New study finds liver may help treat Alzheimer’s disease

Scientists in China have discovered a surprising new approach to dealing with Alzheimer’s disease (a condition causing memory loss and cognitive decline) in which the liver not the brain is targeted.

According to the study, improving the liver’s ability to clear a toxic sticky protein from the blood known as amyloid may reduce its accumulation in the brain. This may not only slow memory decline but could potentially even reverse it.

The research conducted on mice and recently published in the journal Neuron suggests that the liver plays a much more important role in Alzheimer’s disease than previously believed.

Scientists say that liver-targeted therapies could offer a new way to protect against this incurable disease which affects millions of people worldwide.

It is understood that Alzheimer’s disease is caused by the abnormal buildup of amyloid protein. This protein forms plaque between brain cells, blocking the signals through which cells communicate.

Another protein, tau also contributes to damage by twisting into tangled structures inside brain cells eventually destroying them from within.

Current medications can only slow the progression of the disease but cannot stop or reverse it. Many of these drugs also have troubling side effects such as nausea, dizziness and in some cases brain swelling or bleeding.

Amyloid is a waste-like substance produced when brain cells break down proteins during normal activity similar to smoke produced by an engine. The brain continuously produces amyloid and normally clears it effectively.

However, about 60% of the amyloid produced in the brain enters the bloodstream where the liver is responsible for breaking it down and removing it from the body. In this process, the liver also relies on the APOE gene to help clear amyloid.