A nanotechnology nasal spray is being developed that could transform the early detection and treatment of Alzheimer's.
The device shoots tiny magnetic particles into the nose which enter the bloodstream and are carried to the brain.
Each particle is fused to an antibody that targets and binds to rogue molecules believed to play an early role in the disease.
Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) can detect particles and molecules.
To date scientists have only tested the technique in the laboratory on human brain tissue cultures. But if it can be shown to work in human patients it could lead to a major leap forward in managing Alzheimer's.
Scientists believe the changes that lead to Alzheimer's begin decades before the first symptoms appear.
By the time a patient is diagnosed the disease is already far advanced, and experts suspect that is the main reason why a number of promising drugs have failed in patient trials.
Details of the research were presented at a meeting of the Society for Neuroscience in New Orleans.
Lead scientist Dr William Klein, from Northwestern University, Chicago, said: "We have created a probe that targets a unique marker of Alzheimer's disease. This technology is a promising tool for early AD diagnosis."
The antibodies developed by Dr Klein's team are attached to magnetic nanoparticles which allow them to be tracked by an MRI scan. The scientists are now working on incorporating the particles into a spray.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article