Alzheimer’s Vaccine

Worldwide, more than 7.5 million cases of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) are diagnosed each year, and the World Health Organization (WHO) has projected that the total cost of dementia-related illnesses is more than $600 billion annually. Yet treatments for AD are still elusive. Between 2002 and 2012, over 400 clinical trials were conducted on nearly 250 compounds, resulting in only one being approved for temporarily alleviating the symptoms of AD. But recently, researchers in the United States and Australia made a breakthrough discovery in the search for a vaccine that targets the tau proteins and abnormal beta amyloid associated with AD.

AD and dementia suffers exhibit high levels of these broken-down proteins inside their brains. The vaccine works with the immune system to latch onto those proteins and haul them away, much like a tow truck would remove a broken-down car from your driveway.

Even more encouraging was the fact that, although beta amyloid was found to be the prominent driver of the disease, targeting the tau protein appeared to actually reverse its progression. In addition, the vaccine does not appear to trigger any auto-reactive immune response. It is anticipated that human clinical trials will begin in two to three years.