Brain blood vessels are a bit like cerebral superhighways, transporting nutrients, molecules and waste through the protective shield of the blood-brain barrier.<\/p>\n
Like highways, blood vessels degenerate with age and become less efficient for transporting goods \u2014 or, in the case of the brain, potentially harmful metabolic waste.<\/p>\n
When protein fragments called beta-amyloid build up in the brain, for example, they can clump together between neurons and form plaques that cause damage associated with Alzheimer\u2019s disease.<\/p>\n
Newman Sze, Brock University Professor of Health Sciences and Canada Research Chair in Mechanisms of Health and Disease<\/a>, says the failure to clear beta-amyloid, rather than the amount of beta-amyloid being produced, is being recognized as the key driver of late-onset Alzheimer’s disease that affects most dementia patients.<\/p>\n His research focuses on the proteins in the lining of blood vessels that remove beta-amyloid from the brain.<\/p>\n \u201cWe are exploring an overlooked question: whether proteins in the brain\u2019s blood vessels gradually become damaged as we age and whether this makes it harder for the brain to remove waste across brain blood vessels,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n The Alzheimer Society and Brain Canada have\u00a0<\/strong>awarded Sze and his international research team<\/a>\u00a0$100,000 for his proof-of-concept project, Restoring Cerebrovascular Health in Alzheimer\u2019s Disease by Targeting Molecular Damage in the Neurovascular Unit<\/a>.<\/p>\n Sze is an international expert on how biological and chemical processes cause degenerative protein modifications during aging.<\/p>\n This damage hinders the normal functioning of healthy tissue and triggers chronic inflammation associated with conditions such as cardiovascular disease, lung disease and neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer\u2019s disease and vascular dementia.<\/p>\n Damaged proteins also compromise the\u00a0blood\u2013brain barrier, a protective layer of cells lining the surfaces of the brain\u2019s blood vessels.<\/p>\n With the latest grant, Sze and his team are testing their previous breakthrough research linking the age-related degeneration of proteins in blood vessels to the build-up of beta-amyloid in the brain and vessels.<\/p>\n \u201cThis study will test whether removing age-linked protein damage in brain blood vessels using antibodies can help the brain clear beta-amyloid naturally,\u201d he says. \u201cWe will find out if fixing this damage prevents the buildup of amyloid in brain tissue and vessels, protects the blood\u2013brain barrier and keeps brain circulation healthy as a treatment for Alzheimer\u2019s disease and vascular dementia.\u201d<\/p>\n