Diagnosing Alzheimer's Earlier

Reported May 2006

PITTSBURGH (Ivanhoe Broadcast News) -- Alzheimer's disease deprives millions of Americans of their memories. There is no cure, but catching the disease in its earliest stages could help patients lead longer, healthier lives. Now there's a new way to diagnose the disease earlier than ever.

For Arnie Begler, wedding day photos bring back bitter-sweet memories of his mother. "Today, unfortunately, she doesn't remember that wedding anymore."

She doesn't remember, because Alzheimer's robbed her of her memory. Begler's mother was diagnosed nine years ago, but a diagnosis relies on symptoms usually appearing in late stages of the disease. Now, neurologists and imaging specialists may be able to detect the disease long before symptoms appear.

This image shows pictures never before seen of amyloid plaque deposits, proteins in the brain believed to kill brain cells and cause Alzheimer's.

William Klunk, M.D., Ph.D., a geriatric psychiatrist at University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, says "For the first time you're able to see something that you had to wait until after death to see, so you can see whether or not these plaques are in the brain and roughly how much is there."

Patients are injected with a radioactive dye called Pittsburgh Compound-B -- or PIB. Once it reaches the brain, PIB attaches to plaque. Then, a PET scan reveals areas with the most plaque build-up.

"It would be potentially extremely useful and powerful to detect the presence of early disease," says Chester Mathis, Ph.D., a chemist at University of Pittsburgh.

And fighting the disease earlier is something Begler hopes to see for future generations.

Traditionally, definitive diagnosis of Alzheimer's could only be determined through an autopsy. The distinguishing factor between Alzheimer's disease and other dementias is the presence of amyloid plaques -- believed to cause the death of brain cells.

Click here to Go Inside This Science or contact:

William Klunk, Ph.D.
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center
Pittsburgh, PA
(412) 647-8762
(800) 533-8762
upmcweb@upmc.edu National Institute on Aging
http://www.alzheimers.org

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