£250,000 boost for dementia research

A team of experts at Leeds University will examine how Alzheimer's disease develops by looking at the relationships between two proteins linked to the condition.

More than 800,000 people have dementia in the UK and numbers will significantly increase in years to come.

People with Alzheimer's typically have high levels of the amyloid protein in their brains which harms and kills brain cells. But latest research reveals it attaches to prion protein before it inflicts its damage.

Their work will examine how this happens and what role prion plays in the disease.

Among the team is Heledd Griffiths, who was inspired to enter the field after her father, Gwilym, was diagnosed with dementia and Alzheimer's disease in 1998. As his condition progressed, the fit and active man slowly deteriorated until he was wheelchair-bound and needed help with most tasks. He died four years ago.

Dr Griffiths said: "For the family as a whole, it was very difficult to come to terms with, especially knowing there was no cure and my father was going to get progressively worse.

"Working in the field has allowed me to understand the processes involved in the development of the disease that burdened my father and continues to affect so many others and it has also given me a unique opportunity to be part of a team of researchers working together to find a cure."

Nigel Hooper, professor of biochemistry at the university, said: "Our team has already been able to see an interaction between amyloid and prion, and we now want to monitor exactly what is happening and what the consequence of that interaction is.

"Ultimately, we hope this study will tell us more about possible drug targets, taking us a step closer to finding a way to stop the disease in its tracks."

The work is being funded by a grant of 245,000 from the Alzheimer's Research Trust.