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Research leads to possible Alzheimers aid

PHILADELPHIOA, Pa., May 21 (UPI) -- A protein that allows human cancer to resist multiple anti-cancer drugs also appears to play a key role in Alzheimer's disease, Philadelphia researchers say.

Results of research conducted at Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia indicate the protein, active in brain tissue, could be a target for new drugs to treat patients with Alzheimer's. The report will appear in the July issue of the prestigious Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.

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The research, conducted in the Fox Chase laboratory of Kenneth D. Tew, largely concentrated on understanding and circumventing mechanisms of cellular resistance to anti-cancer drugs and understanding cellular pathways that affect drug response and resistance. The new report concerns the human ABCA2 transporter, one of a large family of ATP-binding proteins that transport a variety of molecules across biological membranes.

ATP, or adenosine triphosphate, is present in all living cells and serves as a major energy source for cellular reactions.

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