Innovative Nasal Spray Could Help To Combat Alzheimer's Disease, Scientists Say

WASHINGTON (dpa-AFX) - According to scientists at the University of Texas Medical Branch, the newly developed nasal spray treatment could combat neurodegenerative condition like Alzheimer's disease.

First author Sagar Gaikwad, from the Department of Neurology at The Mitchell Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases, told to Medical News Today, 'Our study shows that the nasal tau immunotherapy importantly reverses Alzheimer's pathology in mice and a single dose is enough to achieve this.'

Gaikwad added, 'This also improves memory and behavior in aged mice.'

Tau protein is useful in stabilization of microtubules, that helps in maintaining the shape of cell and organization in neurons. If the protein becomes defective and fails to stabilize microtubules, it could lead to cognitive decline.

'This nasal spray approach opens new avenues for non-invasive delivery of tau therapeutic antibodies directly to the brain, and it holds promise for many neurodegenerative diseases,' Dr Rakez Kayed, the lead author of the study and a professor, said.

The findings, published in the journal Science Translational Medicine, revealed that the team developed an antibody called TTCM2 to target harmful tau accumulations.

'Our research highlights the potential of nasal tau immunotherapy to effectively target intracellular tau aggregates- a primary driver of neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in diseases like Alzheimer's and other tauopathies,' Kayed said.

'This method not only improves the delivery of therapeutic antibodies but also enhances their efficacy in clearing tau aggregates and improving cognitive functions'.

In the study, the researchers also effectively utilized TRIM21 protein, which helps to get rid of unwanted materials. They used this protein to specifically target and eliminate tau clumps inside brain cells.

'This research could lead to new treatments that improve quality of life and potentially reverse or delay the onset of severe symptoms in patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementia,' Gaikwad concluded.

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