Alzheimer’s drugs could ‘target glaucoma’

Source: Healthcare Digital

Date :08/08/2007 09:41:53

Drugs which treat Alzheimer's disease could be used to target glaucoma, a major cause of blindness, scientists have suggested.

The link has been suggested after researchers found for the first time that key proteins involved in Alzheimer's disease are also implicated in glaucoma.

Scientists at the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology studied nerve cell damage in the retina using a new technology.

They found that the protein beta-amyloid, which causes the so-called "plaque" lesions in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, also leads to cell death in the retina.

With this knowledge the researchers then trialled a combination of new Alzheimer's drugs to treat glaucoma.

Over half a million people suffer from glaucoma in the UK, while almost 700,000 people suffer from dementia.

Writing in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the USA, the researchers argue this new treatment provides an alternative to treating intraocular pressure – which scientists believe could cause glaucoma.

The findings suggest the eye could also be used to test potential treatments for Alzheimer's disease.

The researchers added that although they found a "clear link" between what causes Alzheimer's disease and one of the mechanisms for glaucoma, this does not mean that everyone with the disease will develop glaucoma or vice versa.

August 8 2007