DALLAS, Oct. 13 (UPI) -- U.S. researchers say they created an experimental vaccine to slow beta-amyloid, the protein forming brain abnormalities associated with Alzheimer's disease.
Senior author Dr. Roger Rosenberg of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas says the experimental vaccine fights beta-amyloid -- which forms abnormalities known as plaques that are associated with Alzheimer's disease.
The study, published in Vaccine, describes how the new non-traditional DNA vaccine stimulated the antibodies that bind to and eliminate beta-amyloid.
"The antibody is specific; it binds to plaque in the brain. It doesn't bind to brain tissue that does not contain plaque," Rosenberg says in a statement. "This approach shows promise in generating enough antibodies to be useful clinically in treating patients."
Future studies will focus on determining the long-term safety of the vaccine and whether it protects mental function in animals, Rosenberg says.
"After seven years developing this vaccine, we are hopeful it will not show any significant toxicity, and that we will be able to develop it for human use," Rosenberg says.
