FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Wednesday, Feb 5, 2003
CONTACT:
Floyd E. Bloom, M.D.
Founding Chief Executive Officer
(858) 677-0466
Neurome announces publication of landmark
paper on Alzheimer's disease in Proceedings of the National
Academy of Sciences
Paper is first of its kind to describe
regional brain volumetric changes in a mouse model of Alzheimer's
disease
LA JOLLA, CA - Neurome, Inc. today announced the publication
of its paper describing the determination of regional brain
changes in the PDAPP mouse model of Alzheimer's disease using
high-resolution magnetic resonance microscopy (MRM).
The paper by Jeffrey M. Redwine et al is entitled "Dentate
Gyrus Volume is Reduced Before Onset of Plaque Formation in
PDAPP Mice: A Magnetic Resonance Microscopy and Stereologic
Analysis" and is published in the Proceedings of the
National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
(PNAS), Vol. 100, No. 3, p.p.1381-1386 (2003). The paper is
also available in the early online edition of PNAS at www.pnas.org.
The paper is co-authored by Jeffrey M. Redwine, Ph.D. of
Neurome, Barry Kosofsky, M.D., Ph.D. (Harvard Medical School),
Russell E. Jacobs, Ph.D. (Caltech), Dora Games, Ph.D. (Elan
Pharmaceuticals), John F. Reilly, Ph.D. (Neurome), John H.
Morrison, Ph.D. (Neurome and Mount Sinai School of Medicine),
Warren G. Young, Ph.D. (Neurome) and Floyd E. Bloom, M.D.
(Neurome and The Scripps Research Institute).
"We were quite surprised that pathology was evident
this early in the animal's life. This is important since it
suggests that at least in this animal model, therapeutic interventions
can and should be tested in fairly young animals - well before
the appearance of more advanced reflections of Alzheimer's
Disease pathology," said Floyd E. Bloom, M.D., Founding
CEO and Chairman of the Board of Neurome and Chairman of the
Department of Neuropharmacology at The Scripps Research Institute.
"Furthermore, this discovery demonstrates the power of
modern quantitative approaches to neuropathology, since it
is unlikely that we would have visualized such discrete and
important changes in brain structure with more conventional
approaches."
This is the first example of applying quantitative 3-D MRM
to detect brain volume changes over time in a mouse model
of Alzheimer's disease. The measurements taken revealed that
reduced volume in certain regions of the brain can be detected
by MRM prior to the deposition of beta-amyloid, the protein
that forms thick deposits, or plaques, in the brains of people
with Alzheimer's disease. These findings indicate that over-expression
of amyloid precursor protein and amyloid may initiate pathologic
changes prior to the appearance of plaques, suggesting novel
targets for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease and further
reinforcing the need for early diagnosis and treatment.
Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive, neurodegenerative
disease of the brain characterized by memory loss, language
deterioration, impaired visuospatial skills, poor judgment,
indifferent attitude, but preserved motor function. Symptoms
of Alzheimer's disease usually manifest after age sixty-five;
however, onset may occur as early as age forty, appearing
first as memory decline and, over several years, destroying
cognition, personality, and ability to function. There is
no known cure for Alzheimer's disease, which affects at least
20 million people worldwide.
About Neurome
Neurome, Inc., develops standardized, quantitative databases
that accurately depict and integrate gene expression patterns
in the three-dimensional context of the brain's structures,
circuits, and cells, and deploys these databases in primary
research directed toward the discovery and development of
gene targets for enhancement of brain function and treatment
of brain-based disease. Neurome performs contract brain research
for pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies while at the
same time pursuing its own in-house and collaborative research
protocols. The data collected from these efforts will populate
an evolving, comprehensive database available by subscription
and useful on a broad level for analyses of mouse models of
brain function and disease. In this regard, the application
of the Neurome technologies will provide rigorous, quantitative
data that are optimally suited to the measurement of subtle
cell-type specific shifts in gene expression, as well as progression
and prevention of degenerative events affecting specific cell
classes and brain regions.
For more information, please contact Neurome, Inc., 11149
North Torrey Pines Road, La Jolla, California 92037-1031.
Telephone: (858) 677-0466; Fax (858) 677-0458; Web site: www.neurome.com. |
