Genetic mutation and Alzheimer's Disease

I just saw a summary of a new study, described in the June 27th edition of the on-line journal/resource Cell (www. Cell.com). The study indicates that a mutation in the CALHM1 gene may cause problems with a brain calcium channel and lead to the build up of a protein that is a key part of the plaques that affect the brains of people with Alzheimer’s disease.

New developments in the detection of Alzheimer’s are always interesting, but I thought that a quote by one of the researchers describing this finding as “an attractive new drug target” was particularly compelling. Often, diagnostic advances are made without any kind of treatment options, leaving folks with a hard choice: Do I want to know I may be affected if I really can’t do anything about it? This research may be a source of both diagnostic and treatment advances.