Scientists Find How Brain Cells Die in Alzheimer's

Scientists in Germany and China have found something important about Alzheimer's disease. They found a "death switch" in the brain that kills brain cells.

Alzheimer's disease is a serious illness. People with Alzheimer's lose their memory. Scientists want to stop this disease.

Professor Hilmar Bading works at Heidelberg University in Germany. His team studied how brain cells die. They found that special parts inside brain cells, called NMDA receptors, send a bad signal. This signal makes another part, called TRPM4, work. TRPM4 kills the brain cell.

The scientists tested a new medicine called FP802. In tests with mice, FP802 stopped this death signal. The brain cells stayed alive longer. The mice with Alzheimer's got better.

"This is very important," says Professor Bading. "We can now stop brain cells from dying."

Other scientists also work on this problem. They study mice with ALS, another serious brain disease. FP802 also helps these mice.

The scientists published their work in Molecular Psychiatry, an important science magazine. Many countries gave money for this research, including Germany and Europe.

Scientists hope FP802 can help people with Alzheimer's in the future.