Boston (USA)/Bonn (Germany), July 16, 2013. The U.S.
Alzheimer's Association honors Dr. Eva-Maria Mandelkow and Prof. Dr. Eckhard
Mandelkow from the German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and the
caesar research center. The research couple receives the "2013 Khalid Iqbal
Lifetime Achievement Award" for its role as pioneers in investigating the
role of tau in Alzheimer's disease. The award ceremony was held yesterday (4:
pm EST) within the framework of the "Alzheimer's Association International
Conference (AAIC 2013)" in Boston (USA).
Eva-Maria and Eckhard Mandelkow have with their team
achieved significant progress in Alzheimer's research in the course of their
studies of a protein called "Tau". It is the basic substance of
so-called neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs) - tiny protein deposits that
accumulate in the brains of Alzheimer's patients. In the normal state, tau
binds the cytoskeleton of neurons, in particular, it stabilizes the transport
routes, along which their substances are transported within cells. Very early
in Alzheimer's disease, the tau protein however changes, detaches itself from
the cytoskeleton and agglomerates.
Since the 1990s, Eva-Maria and Eckhard Mandelkow have
analyzed this protein. Longtime, the importance of the tau protein in
Alzheimer's disease has been underestimated. "At that time, no one would
have thought that tau has such a significant role. However, we have pursued
this approach because we have been interested in the role of Tau in nerve
cells" said Eva-Maria Mandelkow.
In pioneering studies, she and her husband have shown why
the tau protein lumps in the brain and which sections of the molecular
structure are thereby decisive. These findings allowed the couple to examine
the consequences of the aggregation of the tau protein for the nerve cells in
more detail. The result: Modifications of normal tau destroy the synapses of
nerve cells. This is for example shown by studies on mice. If the protein
accumulates in nerve cells, these mice perform worse in learning and memory
tests than healthy animals and develop typical symptoms of Alzheimer's disease.
In the event that the production of the toxic tau in the cells is stopped, the
synapses regenerate and the mice recover from amnesia. This observation shows
that the disease process is in principle reversible.
Eckhard Mandelkow: "I am of the opinion that an
effective therapy against Alzheimer is possible. Crucial, in my view, is that
the treatment is started early enough. Many of today's therapy approaches might
have failed on account of the fact that they are applied too late. Since a
disease is usually only diagnosed when typical symptoms such as memory
dysfunctions are evident. At this time, the brain is however already severely
damaged."
Recently, the couple has examined 200,000 substances, in
order to find an active agent against the aggregation of tau. Some of these
substances were found to be potential candidates for drugs. Their effect will
now be further explored.
Prof. Dr. Eckhard Mandelkow studied physics and did his
PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in Heidelberg on the
structure of virus proteins. In a subsequent research period at the Brandeis
University (USA), he already dealt with proteins of the cytoskeleton and then
continued this line of research. Then he focused on the structure and function
of proteins of the nerve cells, especially of motor proteins, tau proteins and
their pathological changes during the neurodegeneration. He is the head of the
working group "Structural principles of neurodegeneration" at the
DZNE/caesar in Bonn.
Dr. Eva-Maria Mandelkow studied medicine, worked for
several years in the clinic and then pursued a career in fundamental research.
She received her PhD at the Max Planck Institute for Medical Research in
Heidelberg for her work in muscle physiology. This was followed by research
periods at the Brandeis University (USA), the Scripps Research Institute (USA)
and at the MRC Laboratory in Cambridge (UK), where she dealt with proteins of
the cytoskeleton. Eva-Maria Mandelkow heads the working group "Cell and
animal models of neurodegeneration" at the DZNE/caesar in Bonn.
Contact
Dr. Eva-Maria und Prof. Dr. Eckhard Mandelkow DZNE, Bonn
and caesar research center
Tel.: +49 228/43302-688
Dr. Dirk Förger
Head of Press and Public Relations
DZNE, Bonn
Tel.: +49 228/43302-260
E-Mail: presse@dzne.de
Dr. Jürgen Reifarth
Head of Press and Public Relations
caesar research center
Tel.: +49 228/9656-107
E-Mail: juergen.reifarth@caesar.de