Study: Common Thread Found in Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease

Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease appear to share a common thread and that may allow them to share a common treatment in the future, according to a study reported in this week's issue of Science.

University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine researchers discovered that alpha-synuclein proteins found in Parkinson's disease help tau form amyloid fibers in a test tube as well as in the brains of mice and vice versa. Tau is a protein linked to the development of Alzheimer's disease.

"Tau and alpha-synuclein work together to promote and propagate each other's formation of fibrous clumps and, hence, the amyloid lesions that cause disease," said study author Benoit Gaisson, a researcher at the university's Center for Neurodegeneative Disease Research.

Researcher Virginia Lee, PhD, who directs the university's Center for Neurodegenerative Disease Research, said this relationship could explain why patients with one disease are more likely to exhibit signs of the other disease.

Gaisson said a drug meant to prevent these lesions from forming in Parkinson's disease might also help prevent tau tangles from forming in Alzheimer's disease.

Other sources: University of Pennsylvania Medical Center