Alzheimer’s research to be aided by new animal testing model

The University of Georgia has developed a new animal testing model that could prove vital in assessing how certain bodies found in nerve cells can affect mental diseases.

Researchers have created the world's first transgenic mouse model possessing Hirano bodies, microscopic molecules that are commonly found in the cells of patients with Alzheimer's, Lou Gehrig's or mad cow disease.

Prior to this, these bodies have proven extremely difficult to analyse in a laboratory setting, meaning it has been impossible to identify what role they played in disease progression.

Thanks to the new mouse model, it has already been established that they are non-toxic, with further insights into the way they affect or are affected by disease now possible.

Marcus Fechheimer, Josiah Meigs Professor of cellular biology at the university, said: "This work gives us a first view of the possible effects of Hirano bodies."

Earlier this year, a study from the US shed further light on the functioning of Alzheimer's disease by showing that those at greater risk of contracting the disease tend to have detectable changes in their brain chemistry.