NYU Langone Medical Center's tip sheet to the International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease 2008

Tau Immunotherapy Prevents Cognitive Decline in an Alzheimer's Mouse Model
Einar M. Sigurdsson, PhD, Assistant Professor of Psychiatry and Pathology, NYU Langone Medical Center
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL WEDNESDAY, JULY 30, 2008 at 3:45 p.m. CT

NYU researchers have successfully prevented the cognitive decline of mice by employing a vaccine that targets tangles of tau, a type of protein associated with Alzheimer's disease. Tests confirmed that the immunotherapy helped preserve cognition as well as reduced tau protein tangles in the brain. The findings support the possibility of an immunotherapy that treats Alzheimer's disease by directly targeting toxic forms of the tau protein.
Presentation # O4-04-04

Enzyme inhibition modulates Alzheimer's pathology in mice
Jose Morales-Corraliza, Ph.D, NYU Langone Medical Center and Research Scientist, Nathan S. Kline Institute
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL SUNDAY, JULY 27, 2008 at 12:30 p.m. CT Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center and the Nathan Kline Institute found that the inhibition of the calpain enzyme, which is involved in various cellular processes, led to a robust decrease in amyloid deposition in mice that develop plaque pathology commonly seen in Alzheimer's disease. Modulation of neuronal calpain activity presents a potential therapeutic approach to Alzheimer's, they report.
Presentation #P1-079

Partial gene-deletion improves memory dysfunction in Alzheimer's mice
Masuo Ohno, Ph.D., NYU Langone Medical Center and head of the Laboratory of Molecular and Cellular Cognition, Center for Dementia Research at the Nathan Kline Institute
EMBARGOED FOR RELEASE UNTIL SUNDAY, JULY 27, 2008 at 12:30 p.m. CT

An animal study by NYU researchers reveals that partially inhibiting an enzyme that initiates the release of amyloid beta led to an improvement in neuronal and cognitive deficits in mice that produced excessive amounts of the plaque forming protein. The approach poses a possibility to rescue Alzheimer's-related deficits, the researchers report.
Presentation #P1-092

About NYU Langone Medical Center

One of the world's premier academic medical institutions for more than 167 years, NYU Langone Medical Center continues to be a leader in patient care, physician education and scientific research. NYU Langone Medical Center is internationally renowned for excellence in areas such as cardiovascular disease, pediatrics, skin care, neurosurgery, urology, cancer care, rehabilitation, plastic surgery, minimally invasive surgery, transplant surgery, infertility, women's health and day surgery.