Your brain cells are killing themselves, programmed to die by inflammatory suicide — at least if you have Alzheimer's disease, a new study has revealed.
Groundbreaking new research into the cause of brain cell death in Alzheimer's patients, published in the journal Science, has revealed that the cells are undergoing necroptosis, a form of cell suicide. It's caused by a dangerous build-up of abnormal brain proteins, which clog neural pathways and lead to death.
A look inside the brain of someone with Alzheimer's would reveal a large build-up of amyloid and tau, proteins that aren't supposed to be in the brain at high levels, or even at all, because normal, healthy brain processes rid the vital organ of such waste.
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The build-ups were transforming into a molecule called MEG3, or maternally expressed gene 3. It's a long on-coding RNA that is a "crucial regulator of skeletal muscle development," says Frontiers in Genetics, an online medical journal.
Those proteins form plaques, which kill brain cells off — or rather force them to kill themselves through the process of necroptosis, a usually natural way for the body in general to heal or grow. It aids with immune response, specifically against cancerous masses.
The mystery of brain cell death in Alzheimer's patients has baffled scientists for years, but the authors of the Science study believe this new breakthrough is "very important and interesting," Professor Bart De Strooper, a member of the UK's Dementia Research Institute, told the BBC.
"For the first time we get a clue to how and why neurons die in Alzheimer's disease," he told the outlet. "There's been a lot of speculation for 30-40 years, but nobody has been able to pinpoint the mechanisms. It really provides strong evidence it's this specific suicide pathway."
De Strooper and other researchers arrived at their conclusions after performing extensive tests on genetically modified mice in laboratories in the UK and Belgium, specifically at University College London and KU Leuven in Belgium.
The mice had been programmed to produce immense quantities of abnormal amyloid. Human brain cells were inserted into the mice's brains and observed as scientists continued to test drugs on the animals that would reduce amyloid buildup.
Researchers determined that blocking the Meg3 molecule could impede brain cell death, which led them to believe that the discovery could lead to an entire new line of drugs.
Scientists will need years of research and tests. Professor Tara Spire-Jones of the University of Edinburgh said the study "addresses the gap in Alzheimer's research."
"These are fascinating results and will be important for the field moving forward." However, she acknowledged how much research it will take before scientists can confidently say it will be an effective treatment against Alzheimer's.