New from NCP
23 November 2005
Clinical Practice: Alzheimer's vaccine reviewed
doi:10.1038/ncpneuro0019
doi:10.1038/ncpneuro0046
A controversial vaccine that was the subject of a halted trial to prevent cognitive decline in Alzheimer's patients could have the potential to be reformulated to eliminate its toxicity while retaining the benefits. In a Practice Point article in the December issue of Nature Clinical Practice Neurology, Thomas Wisniewski considers how this could be achieved, while commenting on the recently published trial results.
Despite evidence that an amyloid beta vaccine can reduce brain amyloid deposits and improve cognitive function in patients with Alzheimer's disease, the clinical trial was stopped owing to the development of encephalitis in a small proportion of patients. Wisniewski points out that the positive and negative effects of the vaccine are attributable to different components of the immune response. Improvements in cognitive function were linked to an antibody-mediated response, whereas encephalitis was associated with a cell-mediated response. Antibodies that are engineered to avoid the cell-mediated response while retaining the antibody-mediated response could be the way forward, he argues.
The ability to image amyloid plaques in the living brain is important both for the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease and for increasing our knowledge of the underlying disease mechanisms. In a Technology Insight Review article, Dan Huddleston and Scott Small review recent progress using positron emission tomography (PET scanning) in humans, and consider whether some promising results using magnetic resonance imaging in animals might be translated into the clinical setting.
Author contact details:
Thomas Wisniewski (New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 212 263 2152; Email: thomas.wisniewski@med.nyu.edu
Scott A Small (Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 212-305-9194; Email: sas68@columbia.edu
Also in this issue ….
doi:10.1038/ncpneuro0047
Statins are being widely touted as the latest 'wonder drugs', and a Drug Insight Review in this issue explores their potential for treating neuroinflammatory diseases such as multiple sclerosis.
Author contact details:
Scott Zamvil (University of California San Francisco, CA, USA)
Tel: +1 415-502-7395; Email: zamvil@ucsf.neuroimmunol.org
Editor contact
Heather Wood, (Editor, Nature Clinical Practice Neurology)
Tel: +44 20 7843 3609; E-mail: ncpneuro@nature.com
The Nature Clinical Practice journals:
The first four journals launched in November 2004 and a further four in November 2005. This is NPG's most extensive launch programme and the Nature Clinical Practice series is due to extend to 15 titles over the next few years.
Each month the journals filter original research in their field, highlighting the most important research articles, then explaining how the research affects patients' treatments. Content also includes editorial and opinion pieces, highlights from the current literature, commentaries on the application of recent research to practical patient care, thorough reviews, and in-depth case studies.
