The news comes as scientists from the University of Aberdeen have been awarded almost £10,000 for new equipment that will boost their studies into the causes of Alzheimer’s. Funded by the Alzheimer’ Research Trust, the team are studying how nerve cells in the brain communicate with each other. They are also looking for “biomarkers”, biological clues that could help diagnose people with Alzheimer’s.

Prof Tibor Harkany, who leads the research team at the University of Aberdeen, said:
“My group has two main aims. We want to find out what causes brain cells to become damaged in Alzheimer’s, and we are also looking for new ways to diagnose the disease. Both studies are looking for new targets at which future drugs could be aimed to treat Alzheimer’s”.

Dr Simon Ridley, of the Alzheimer’s Research Trust who will be talking at the meeting, said:
“This is exciting research that will provide greater clarity in our understanding of Alzheimer’s. It is a very complex disease, and we desperately need to fund more research like Prof Harkany’s to offer new hope of developing the treatments we need.

“Nearly 3,000 people in Aberdeenshire alone have dementia, and this is a figure forecast to double within a generation. The threat this condition poses to our society is real, and we must support research that will give us answers.”

The Alzheimer’s Research Trust event will take place from 2-4.30pm on Tuesday 2nd June 2009 at the Salvation Army Citadel, Castle Street, Aberdeen, AB11 5BG. For more information contact Helen Lemmon: 01224 557374 or helen.lemmon@nhs.net