New Theory on the Cause of Alzheimer’s Disease

 Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating illness that takes our loved ones from us prematurely.

They begin to forget things and eventually can no longer take care of themselves and some that

suffer from this disease need around the clock care. My grandpa passed away due to

Alzheimer’s disease in 2008, leaving my grandma without her husband for 10 years before her

own passing. The pain this problem causes for families is unimaginable, as you watch someone

you know so well begin to forget who you are completely. Alzheimer’s is a form of dementia,

meaning the impaired ability to remember, think, or make decisions that interferes with doing

everyday activities. Alzheimer’s can be very upsetting for those suffering from it, as they lose

the independence they have had for their entire lives. Sometimes, children end up caring for

their parents as they did for them while they grew up. The first step to curing this horrible

disease is finding out what causes it. Scientists have been unsure for a while, but a new study

tells us they may have made a breakthrough.

Alzheimer’s is characterized by memory loss, delusions, hallucinations, aggression, and

confusion which will eventually lead to death, often untimely. Alois Alzheimer hypothesized that

the cause of this was plaques on the brain, as they were seen in autopsies of his patients who

had passed from such symptoms. The plaques were clumps of amyloid-beta protein. To this

day, this is still widely known as the cause of Alzheimer’s. There are some facts that make us

question this theory, though. Many people have plaques on their brains and do not exhibit any

neurological symptoms like those suffering from Alzheimer’s. Also, in some cases, when there is

too little amyloid-beta protein in the brain, the clinical outcomes have been worse. The Journal

of Alzheimer’s Disease recently posted a study where they investigated if the amount of

amyloid-beta 42 in the brain is important in Alzheimer’s disease progression. They studied

people with a rare inherited gene mutation that puts them at more risk for developing the

disease. The study found that the depletion of amyloid-beta 42 was more harmful than the

amount of plaques. After three years, those with high amyloid-beta 42 levels had preserved their

cognition. Amyloid-beta 42 has also been found to be included in memory and cognition. These

people remained normal regardless of how many plaques they had in their brains. Carriers of

the Osaka gene, a rare inherited form of Alzheimer’s, have been seen to develop dementia

even if they had no plaques in their brains at all, only low amyloid-beta 42 levels. In a drug trial

where amyloid-beta 42 levels were decreased because they believed this would decrease the

plaque production in the brain, patients' conditions worsened. Overall, many are hypothesizing

that low levels of amyloid-beta 42 is the cause of Alzheimer’s disease.

If low levels of amyloid-beta 42 in the brain is proven to be the cause of Alzheimer’s disease, a

cure may be able to be found. Possibly, adding more amyloid-beta 42 into the brain could

improve patients' conditions. This way, our beloved parents and grandparents won’t have to

lose their cognitive abilities and dignity as we take care of them while their conditions worsen

and we can do nothing to fix it. One in three senior citizens dies of Alzheimer’s disease. This

sickness is more deadly than breast cancer and prostate cancer combined. With Alzheimer’s

disease being a top 10 cause of death in the United States, the 5th leading cause of death in

those 65+, it would be incredible to remove this problem from our society. It would save many

lives and prevent so much suffering and heartbreak. Those of us predisposed to it will no longer

have to live in fear as well, as there would be a cure if we need it in the future. Advancements in

medicine are incredibly important and should be reported on in the news more often than they

are. If not for this assignment, I would not have known this about a disease that impacted my

family so closely.

Elizabeth Hardy (5)

https://www.sciencealert.com/researchers-have-a-new-theory-about-what-causes-alzheimers-

and-its-not-plaque