Alzheimer's disease (AD), which is a growing concern across the globe, might have found an answer for a better and comprehensive therapy.
The disease, which poses significant challenges in terms of both medical and economic burden, requires treatment and preventive strategies.
According to Mayo Clinic, early symptoms of AD include forgetting recent events or conversations. Over time, Alzheimer's disease leads to serious memory loss and affects a person's ability to do everyday tasks.
Researchers at the Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST) explored a new path involving nanoparticles integrating a polyphenol with antioxidant properties found in green tea, neurotransmitter, and amino acid to treat AD.
How does it work?
According to experts, the new treatment strategy alters the progression of the disease, slowing it down, improving memory, and supporting thinking skills.
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The conventional therapies often target only a single pathological feature, such as amyloid aggregation or oxidative stress.
The proposed therapy involved the integration of epigallocatechin-3-gallate (EGCG) an antioxidant found in green tea, dopamine, a neurotransmitter important for mood and tryptophan, an amino acid involved in many cellular functions, into a nanoparticle called EGCG-dopamine-tryptophan nanoparticles (EDTNPs).
The benefit of the nanoparticle is that it acts on multiple targets, such as amyloid aggregation, oxidative stress, inflammation, and neuronal degeneration. It also helped in enhancing neuronal regeneration.
On testing on mouse models, it was observed that these nanoparticles disassembled toxic plaques, reduced inflammation, restored balance inside brain cells, and even improved memory and learning.
Published in the journal Small, experts believe the new therapy path could help people with AD and, in the long run, could make life easier for patients by offering better treatment strategies.