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Research links protein to brain disease prevention

10/18/11

Recent research in preclinical Northwestern Medicine found a protein that promotes the growth of blood vessels and neurons and can help in preventing genetic brain disease.

The study, published in Nature Medicine, discovered that degeneration of the cerebellum, or spinocerebellar ataxia type 1, is caused by a mutation in the ataxin-1 protein, which regulates the protein known as vascular endothelial growth factor or VEGF.


"If you give VEGF early in the disease, you prevent degeneration later in life," said Puneet Opal, associate professor of neurology and of cell and molecular biology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, who also treats ataxic patients. "We think VEGF increases the blood vessels in the brain but also directly prevents neurons from dying. These results hold the potential for future therapy."

Brain disease is an epidemic that affects senior citizens and baby boomers as they grow older in life. Like any other debilitating ailment, brain disease can prevent some elderly individuals from obtaining a life insurance policy they may need. However, those suffering from certain diseases can still obtain life insurance coverage if they pick the right policy.

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