New combo therapy could boost Alzheimer’s treatment: new Canadian research

Researchers at the University of Waterloo are testing a new way to treat Alzheimer’s disease—combining existing drugs with compounds found in common foods.In a recent study published in the scientific journal ACS Chemical Neuroscience, the Canadian team found that pairing anti-amyloid antibody therapies with molecules derived from micronutrients could improve treatment outcomes, while at the same time potentially reducing side effects.Alzheimer’s disease, the leading cause of dementia, is driven in part by the buildup of amyloid proteins in the brain: when these proteins clump together, they disrupt normal brain function. There is no cure, but physicians sometimes use antibody treatments to target and clear these clumps. But these therapies can carry serious risks, including brain swelling and bleeding.The Waterloo researchers tested whether combining those therapies with naturally occurring compounds could make them more effective. In the lab, they focused on resveratrol and curcumin—molecules found in foods like grapes, berries, peanuts and turmeric.What they found was that the pairing helped prevent amyloid proteins from clumping, potentially improving treatment effectiveness.“This approach could allow clinicians to use lower doses of antibodies, potentially reducing the risk of serious treatment-related side effects,” Dr. Praveen Nekkar Rao, a professor in the School of Pharmacy at Waterloo, told the University of Waterloo’s news site. Dr. Nekkar Rao said the idea draws from other areas of medicine, where combination therapies are commonly used to treat complex diseases.The researchers caution that the findings do not mean patients should try to treat or prevent Alzheimer’s by consuming these compounds through diet. The amounts needed to have a therapeutic effect in the brain would be far higher than what can be safely consumed through food.Instead they say the phase of research will focus on developing drugs based on these molecules that can better reach the brain and work alongside existing therapies.Dementia affects about 750,000 people in Canada, with the Alzheimer Society of Canada estimating that number will rise to one million by 2030.

New combo therapy could boost Alzheimer’s treatment: new Canadian research

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