(Ivanhoe Newswire) -- The blood-brain barrier is a powerful guard that lets nutrients in while keeping foreign matter out.
Normally, that's a good thing. But when doctors are trying to treat brain conditions like Alzheimer's disease and stroke, it can throw up a huge roadblock to effective therapy.
Researchers from Saint Louis University believe they've found a way around this ever-vigilant sentinel. In a study conducted in mice, they were able to isolate the specific gatekeeper responsible for keeping a neuro-protectant hormone called PACAP27 out of the brain, then turn it off long enough to allow the hormone to enter.
Once in the brain, the hormone went to work protecting the brain against both Alzheimer's disease and stroke. In mice with stroke, PACAP27 already circulating in the body was able to enter the brain and minimize the damage.
In mice with Alzheimer's disease, the researchers supplied an extra dose of the hormone, which then reversed the effects of the condition. "The mice that had a version of Alzheimer's disease became smarter and in the stroke model, we reduced the amount of damage caused by the blockage of blood to the brain and improved brain recovery," study author William A. Banks, M.D., was quoted as saying.
More study will be needed before this technique can be tried in people, but Dr. Banks and his colleagues believe it could have implications in treating many diseases of the central nervous system.
SOURCE: Journal of Cerebral Blood Flow & Metabolism, published online November 12, 2008
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