Elga de Vries previously showed that the immune system in patients with Alzheimer’s disease is disrupted at an early stage. The professor of neuroimmunology at Amsterdam UMC will now investigate which factors throw that system out of balance.
Most research into Alzheimer’s disease focuses on protein deposits in the brains of patients. The fact that the immune system also plays a role receives less attention. And that is precisely the subject that De Vries has focused on within the BRAIN project. Her hypothesis is that inflammatory cells mainly play a role in instigating the disease. She wants to substantiate this statement with further research into the immune system.
Another question that De Vries wants to answer is which factors disrupt the immune system. The researchers examined which substances in the blood correlate with the changing immune system in both MS and Alzheimer’s disease. This showed that it concerns lipids.
MS and Alzheimer’s patients have a different lipid profile than healthy subjects. De Vries now wants to find out which lipids are specifically involved in the early disruption of the immune system in people with Alzheimer’s disease. Because of this unique approach, the European Research Council has awarded her an Advanced grant of 2.5 million euros.
Bron:
2023-09-25 15:03:52
#Resetting #immune #system #Alzheimers #disease #MedNet
