Alzheimer's Drugs Could Prevent Glaucoma, Say Researchers
New research has established a possible use for Alzheimer's drugs in the prevention of glaucoma. In experiments undertaken by The University College London, sufficient evidence arose to suggest that there was a similarity between the two conditions, and consequently that treatments for Alzheimer's could have an application in safeguarding patients, at danger of eye damage, from subsequently contracting glaucoma. The team there stressed that the 500,000 people in the UK with glaucoma were no more likely to develop Alzheimer's than before.
The team's findings were published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and received a positive response from prominent eye charity group, the International Glaucoma Association.
Presently, information concerning how glaucoma develops is limited within medical fields. The present generation of treatments and operations for the condition deal with the raised level of blood pressure inside the eye that glaucoma generates, but these can induce interference in the supply of blood to the optic nerve, which in turn causes damage to eyesight. Certain individuals with glaucoma do have eye pressure at a normal level, but still subsequently lose their sight. This new research, in which an Alzheimer's connection has been discovered, could, said the leader of the research team, open the door to reveal more about what triggers glaucoma, and how best to treat it.
Specifically, the University College team closely viewed damage to nerve cells located in the retina, and from this deduced that a certain protein - beta-amyloid - is responsible both for the harmful "plaques" in Alzheimer's patients' brains, and for the damage inflicted on the optic nerve.
The team was spearheaded by Dr Francesca Cordeiro, who, commenting on the significance of the research, stated: "We've seen for the first time that there is a clear link between what causes Alzheimer's disease and one of the basic mechanisms behind glaucoma." She continued: "We are trying a new approach which has never been tried before - our success in treating glaucoma in the lab by combining different Alzheimer's treatments represents a brand new treatment strategy."
The reaction from the Chief Executive of the International Glaucoma Association, David Wright, was that the research was "interesting". He added: "We have been searching for an efficient 'neuroprotective' agent for glaucoma patients. If we have a drug that is neuroprotective within the brain for Alzheimer's patients, there's a good chance it will work in the eye, as the eye is simply an outgrowth of brain material."
Pharmaceutical International will cover further developments in this area of research in future News Items.
Source - Pharmaceutical International's Assistant Editor
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