According to research findings reported by University of California, Los Angeles in the Dec. 21, 2006 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine, there is a new imaging molecule that can detect and map brain plaques (and tangles) of Alzheimer's disease patient which could eventually lead to earlier diagnosis of the disease.

Developed by UCLA researchers, the compound called FDDNP can also be potentially used in evaluating new treatments for Alzheimer's.

FDDNP binds to plaques and tangles, allowing researchers to see these abnormal deposits in the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients on PET (positron emission tomography) scans.

According to Susan Molchan, M.D., program officer in the NIA Neuroscience and Neuropsychology of Aging Program:

"The hope is that better imaging techniques and markers will allow us to conduct clinical trials with fewer volunteers and in less time.
The ability to image brain changes may allow us to see how drugs affect the accumulation of proteins in the brain that cause Alzheimer's plaques and tangles, possibly preventing or delaying the progression of Alzheimer's."

Read the full report.

[Photo Credit: Science Museum]