Nerve cells are usually protected from damage in the brain by 'insulating cells', which wrap themselves around them.

Nerve cells are usually protected from damage in the brain by 'insulating cells', which wrap themselves around them.

Insulating cells are damaged in people with dementia, indicating that they could be a good treatment target. Insulating cells are produced by a different group of cells called OPCs. It could be possible to boost OPC activity to repair or replace lost insulating cells.

Professor David Small has been awarded a project grant to investigate the potential of OPCs to be a treatment target for Alzheimer's disease. The project involves research institutes in Australia and London. The UK-based research will be carried out by Dr Kaylene Young, an Alzheimer's Society Research Fellow.

The scientists will work with mouse models of Alzheimer's disease to find out what happens to OPCs and insulating cells during Alzheimer's disease. They will also determine whether OPCs could be a potential target for a treatment.

This exciting research will provide a better understanding of the role of other important brain cells in dementia and begin to answer whether they could be targeted by a treatment in the future.

Professor David Small, Menzies Research Institute, Australia & UCL

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