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		</div><p>A vaccine against Alzheimer’s has come a step closer to reality after scientists succeeded in preventing the build-up of toxic brain proteins linked to the disease.</p>
<p>Experiments on mice showed that the DNA vaccine, injected into skin, could potentially delay the onset of Alzheimer’s with no serious side-effects.</p>
<p>The findings, published in the journal Alzheimer’s Research And Therapy, could pave the way for clinical trials with human patients, said the scientists.</p>
<p>Two kinds of toxic protein or protein building blocks are thought to play a key role in Alzheimer’s – beta-amyloid and tau.</p>
<p>Beta-amyloid accumulates in sticky clumps in the brain and is a characteristic hallmark of the disease seen in patient post-mortem examinations.</p>
<p>Tau is a protein which produces destructive “tangles” within nerve cells. Some research suggests that the two are linked, with beta-amyloid promoting the formation of tau tangles.</p>
<p>The new vaccine contains DNA coding for a segment of the beta-amyloid protein building block, or peptide.</p>
<p>In the study the vaccine triggered an immune response that not only led to a 40% reduction in beta-amyloid build-up, but also reduced tau formation by 50%.</p>
<p>The research was conducted on mice which were genetically engineered to develop a rodent equivalent of Alzheimer’s disease.</p>
<p>Lead scientist Dr Roger Rosenberg, director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Centre at the University of Texas in the US, said: <em>“This study is the culmination of a decade of research that has repeatedly demonstrated that this vaccine can effectively and safely target in animal models what we think may cause Alzheimer’s disease.</em></p>
<p><em>“I believe we’re getting close to testing this therapy in people.”</em></p>
<p>A major obstacle to developing effective Alzheimer’s vaccines has been finding safe ways to introduce them to the body.</p>
<p>One previous experimental vaccine developed in the early 2000s caused brain swelling in some patients when tested on humans.</p>
<p>The new vaccine is injected into skin instead of muscle, which leads to a different kind of immune response.</p>
<p>If repeated in humans, the effects seen in mice would have “major therapeutic value”, said the researchers.</p>
<p>Co-author Dr Doris Lambracht-Washington, another member of the University of Texas team, said: <em>“If the onset of the disease could be delayed by even five years, that would be enormous for the patients and their families.</em></p>
<p><em>“The number of dementia cases could drop by half.”</em></p>
<p>A number of drugs that target amyloid brain deposits and tau tangles are under development or in clinical trials.</p>
<p>But an effective vaccine would be a better strategy, according to the Texas scientists. It would be both more accessible and less expensive.</p>
<p>Earlier this year, the same team discovered the precise point at which a tau molecule becomes harmful but has not yet formed tangles in the brain.</p>
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<div id="google_ads_iframe_/1005055/n_bn_mpu_start_300x250_1__container__">The scientists are also working on a spinal fluid test that can detect abnormal tau before symptoms arise.</div>
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