Alzheimers and prion diseases: cellular and genetic mechanisms of neurodegeneration

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Alzheimers disease is the commonest form of dementia that affects a large proportion of the elderly population of the UK. Many other people are affected through knowing a family member or friend who has this debilitating disease. Prion diseases, such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), are much rarer but have received much attention in recent years because of the still unknown number of people in the UK infected following the epidemic of bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) (mad cow disease). Both these brain diseases are fatal and, as yet, there are no cures for either disease. We have noticed similarities in the way that brain cells regulate the processing of key proteins that cause Alzheimers and prion diseases. The aim of this proposal is to investigate these processes in cells and animals, as well as in post-mortem brain tissue from Alzheimers patients. The results from our work will help us understand how these diseases develop and may aid in the identification of new treatments.