Dr Sudipta Maiti and his team at the Department of Chemical sciences, TATA Institute of Fundamental Research have researched the behaviour of Amyloid Beta proteins which when combined with other aberrant proteins are responsible for attacking brain cells causing the symptoms common to Alzheimer’s sufferers such as impaired speech, judgement, behaviour and most significantly memory.

Alzheimer’s affects 35.6 million people worldwide.

According to Alzheimer’s Disease International, a league of global, non-profit organizations that promote international Alzheimer’s awareness, in the next 40 years the amount of people diagnosed with the disease will increase to 115 million.

The research team’s breakthrough came with the discovery that once extricated from the pernicious bonds it formed with other rogue proteins, it resumes its natural job of assisting human memory and cognitive behaviour.

The experiment showed that, when introduced to an abnormally high concentration of brain fluid, the proteins transformed into oligomers (several of the proteins forming a compound).

The abnormal protein forms are toxic to the brain, consequently killing off brain cells and causing it to shrink.

The scientific community at large are now tasked with using this knowledge to target the oligomers and break their bond.

A team of research scientists from the University of South Florida have found that caffeine and an unknown element in coffee are responsible for releasing high levels of the protein GCSF in to the blood stream, which they believe, reduces the risk of developing Alzheimer’s.

The protein GCSF is greatly diminished in Alzheimer sufferers, and an increase has been linked to an improved memory in mice with the disease.

Scientists had originally believed caffeine to hold the answers to coffee’s positive effect on Alzheimer’s since other studies have shown that caffeine reduces the blood and brain levels of the abnormal protein beta-amyloid, which is widely believed to be a significant factor in the onset of the disease.

However, tests for caffeine alone did not produce the same increase in GCSF’s leading scientists to conclude that a combination of caffeine and an unidentified component within coffee was responsible for producing this effect in the body of the mice.

The research team stated “coffee may be the best source of caffeine to protect against Alzheimer’s Disease because of a component in coffee that synergizes with caffeine to enhance plasma GCSF levels, resulting in multiple therapeutic actions against Alzheimer’s Disease”.

Although the researchers encourage moderate coffee consumption they are cautious to insist their findings do not mean coffee will completely protect regular drinkers from Alzheimer’s.

They also emphasise the experiments only used ‘drip’ coffee, and that they are uncertain if the same effects hold for instant coffee on preventing alzhemeir’s .

Alzheimer’s disease damages the brain which leads to function loss in the cognitive functioning of the brain.

But what’s the difference between Alzheimer’s and Dementia? Although many people believe alzheimer’s and dementia are the same disease. This is not true and there is a big difference between the two.

The big difference between Alzheimer and Dementia is the fact that Alzheimer is a disease that damages the brain.

Alzheimer itself is not Dementia. Dementia is a syndrome, a collection of symptoms. Due to the fact that dementia is a syndrome, there are no 2 people with the same expression of this disease. It is hard to say that it will start with memory loss followed by loss of concept in time. Every person experience dementia symptoms in a different way.

One type of dementia is indeed called Alzheimer’s disease. 70% of all persons with dementia have alzheimer’s. The result of having alzheimer’s is that the sufferers will clutter and produce plaques and tangles. These plaques and tangles interfere with the normal functioning of the brain and this is what causes function loss of the brain.

Genetics – although the results are not conclusive, there appears to be a clear case for genetic inheritance in cases where the disease is contracted early in life. Often GP’s will advise you to seek genetic counselling and testing if two or more close relatives developed the disease before the age of 60.

Age – Alzheimer’s disease primarily affects the elderly, typically people over the age of 65. It is estimated that in the UK, one in 20 over the age of 65 has the disease, while people over the age of 80 have a one in five chance of developing the disease. However, Alzheimer’s disease is not a result of ageing, though the elderly are likely to have mild symptoms of dementia.

Down’s syndrome – People who suffer from Down’s syndrome are more likely to develop dementia as they get older, though not all develop the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Reasons for their higher susceptibility to the disease point towards their extra copy of chromosome 21 which is linked to the amyloid protein found in the plaques and tangles present in the brains of dementia sufferers.

Should I be worried?

In observing yourself and other people you should take note of any unusual changes. The early stages of dementia can be a sign of a number of possible problems, one of which may be Alzheimer’s disease.

Typical indicators of dementia include problems with short term memory, for instance frequently forgetting things, difficulties with basic tasks and feelings of confusion.

While you shouldn’t be alarmed, the best course of action is to seek help from your GP, at least to allay any anxieties. Your GP may refer you on to someone that is able to give you with a proper diagnosis and they will help you rule out other causers for your symptoms, and hopefully diagnose treatable conditions.

Treatment

At present there is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, but there are drug treatments which are capable of slowing down the progression of the disease and, in some cases, alleviating certain symptoms.

Research has shown that people with Alzheimer’s have a shortage of acetylcholine in their brains. In response to this, people in the early stages of the disease are recommended the drugs Aricept, Exelon and Reminyl as a means to maintain existing supplies of the chemical acetylcholine.