Alzheimer’s Research UK has awarded two researchers, Dr Sarah Carpanini and Professor Phillip Taylor, from Cardiff University in Wales £387,000 to carry out projects aimed at finding new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease (AD).
The funding is part of a £3m package of new nationwide research funding to accelerate the charity’s search for a cure for AD.
AD is a progressive and irreversible neurodegenerative disorder that currently affects around 900,000 people in the UK.
The two Cardiff researchers will investigate the role genes play in driving the development of AD, which could lead to potential new treatments.
Capanini will use £271,000 of the grant to “investigate mechanisms which cause the complement system to malfunction and increase the risk of AD,” she said.
The complement system comprises a group of proteins that work together to identify pathogens and unwanted cells to be removed from the immune system.
Complement signals connections between brain cells to remove pathogens and unwanted cells in the brain by an immune cell called microglia.
Using innovative techniques, Capanini will create new cell models to reveal the changes that occur in genes that control complement and pinpoint them to potentially discover a way to prevent the process from re-occurring.
£116k has been awarded to Taylor to investigate the connection between variations in a gene active in the microglia, ATP8B4, and the risk of developing AD.
Changes to ATP8B4 increase its activity and are thought to be involved in maintaining the protective membrane surrounding cells.
However, researchers are unaware of how these changes could lead to AD.
If successful, it “could reveal new targets for future dementia treatments, which is an extremely exciting prospect,” said Taylor.
Emma Stone, research programmes manager at Alzheimer’s Research UK, commented: “It is essential we keep investing into dementia research like these two projects in Cardiff.
“Gaining a better understanding of the factors at play in dementia will help us reach a cure faster. It’s what people affected by dementia need and deserve.”
The charity has already invested over £4m into research at Cardiff University, one of the biggest scientific hubs for dementia studies, over the past 25 years.