London, Aug 31 (EFE).– French and German researchers have detected a new active peptide, a compound formed by the union of various amino acids, which could be an active element in the development of Alzheimer’s, according to a study published Monday in Nature magazine.

This is the eta-amyloid peptide, which went unnoticed for some 30 years among scientists, who now believe it plays a relevant role in interfering with neuronal function in the part of the brain known as the cerebral hippocampus.

Alzheimer’s is associated with these neurotoxic protein aggregates, though up to now research has focused on the study of the beta-amyloid, the chief component of these insoluble deposits.

The accumulation of the new peptide, derived from the amyloid precursor protein, or APP, as is the beta-amyloid, also alters neuronal function and could for that reason is expected to influence certain ongoing clinical trials.

A group headed by Michael Willem of Ludwig-Maximilian University in Munich, or LMU, suggests that the eta-amyloid, produced by the brain itself, is associated with the appearance of neurotoxic aggregates in the hippocampus, a condition that later spreads to the entire brain.

From studies using mice, as well as clinical trials with Alzheimer’s patients, researchers now believe the new peptide can diminish the brain’s ability to retain information.

The function of the two peptides is nonetheless different – while the well-known beta-amyloid makes the neurons hyperactive, the newly discovered eta-amyloid makes them harder to stimulate. EFE