Alzheimer's patients treated with ultrasound to open the blood-brain barrier
Staff at CTVNews.ca
Published Tuesday May 2, 2017 5:02 PM EDT
Last Updated Tuesday, May 02, 2017 10:12 AM EDT
Canadian researchers have taken a first key step that could lead to a whole new way of treating Alzheimer's disease.
Researchers at the Sunnybrook Health Sciences Center and the University of Toronto are using targeted ultrasound to safely open the blood-brain barrier in patients with Alzheimer's disease, with the hope that This will help remove the brain from the toxic plaque.
This is an "out of the box" approach using patients like Karen Hellerman. The 62-year-old child of Chatham, Ontario. Has been diagnosed with early stage dementia.
Hellerman loses his short-term memory and ability to handle complex tasks.
"Sometimes I can get it out, and sometimes I can not and it bothers me." Hellerman told CTV News. Her husband, Neil, knows that there are no drug treatments to slow down or effectively stop the disease.
"As her dementia aggravates, her physical condition will worsen ... this is not a good thing. And she's young, she'll lose a part of her life "Said Neil.
She is patient # 3 in a group of six people with early Alzheimer's disease, participating in the first study of its kind.
One of the biggest challenges in treating brain disease is getting medication therapies beyond the blood-brain barrier, which is like a protective "envelope" that surrounds even the smallest blood vessels In the brain and acts as a "door" to protect the brain from toxins and proteins that might enter the bloodstream.
But this also hinders the entry of drugs that could be effective in treating Alzheimer's disease and other brain diseases..
In November 2015, Sunnybrook researchers temporarily opened the blood-brain barrier for the first time to see if they could administer chemotherapy directly in the brain tumor of a patient
Now, researchers are using the same technique for Alzheimer's patients.
This historic essay means that one day it is possible to allow entry of drugs or even stem cells directly into the brain, which could be effective in the treatment of dementia. Treatment could also help open the "door" of the brain to allow the natural cleansing body to cleanse the amyloid brain plaques that are the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease.
For the procedure, a specialized helmet device was placed on the head of Hellerman and it was placed inside a magnetic imaging machine..
Then, microbubbles were injected into his vein, which traveled the brain within 30 seconds. Ultrasound waves were sent to a small area of the brain to shake the microbubbles, temporarily opening the blood-brain barrier
Using contract dyeing, the team was able to confirm immediately that the barrier had been opened and that it had been open for about six to eight hours.
The team did not deliver Hellerman's brain medications during the ultrasound sessions. Their objective was simply to study whether the barrier could be successfully and safely violated.
The motivation of the study is the success of animal testing.
The researchers found that focused ultrasound helped reduce amyloid plaques in the brain of the mouse.
Additionally, memory task tests have shown that the memory of the mouse is greatly improved. The scientists were also able to examine the slices of the brain of the mice and found that they had less plaque amyloid after the procedure.
Kullervo Hynynen, director of physical science at Sunnybrook Research Institute, has been working on technology for two decades.
"It could be that we are stimulating certain effects in the brain that are helping to shed light," he said. "We also believe that we are stimulating the growth of new neurons."
It is possible that by opening the barrier, the treatment allows the brain to naturally eliminate the toxic plaque.
Dr. Nir Lipsman, principal investigator of the trial and neurosurgery at Sunnybrook, said that he suggested that focused ultrasound could not only attack the pathological features of Alzheimer's disease, There is a clue to be able to attack the symptoms as well.
The technique will be tested on five other patients with Alzheimer's disease. All will undergo two sessions of focused ultrasound and various cognitive tests as well as imaging analyzes to see if there are changes in amyloid deposits related to AD in the brain.
Neurologist Dr. Sandra Black, lead co-investigator of the new trial, says she is excited about the research, but she notices it early. .
"This is a whole new world of possibilities. But we have to take one step at a time and make sure it is safe," she noted.
If this phase proves successful, researchers can start another trial to test the introduction of small amounts of drugs into the brain area most affected by dementia, the hippocampus, which is the Region to create new memories.
Hellerman knows that this first safety study will not help him, but the knowledge gained is advancing the research.
"Maybe not for me, but for others ... maybe better, you know what I mean," she said.
Her husband hopes that she will be at the top of the list for future studies on focused ultrasound.
"I hope it works and that Karen's level of dementia does not get worse and maybe improves," said Neil.
With a report from medical specialist CTV Avis Favaro and producer Elizabeth St. Philip
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