2010 Grants - Pratico

Anti-Leukotriene Therapy for the Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease

Domenico Pratico, M.D.
Temple University
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

2010 Novel Pharmacological Strategies to Prevent Alzheimer's Disease

Leukotrienes are a group of natural chemicals found throughout the body including the brain, and are often involved in causing inflammation or related responses. Levels of one leukotriene - known as LTB4 - and its receptor- LT receptor - increase in the brain during aging. In addition, levels of LTB4 and its receptor are often higher in persons with Alzheimer's disease as compared to healthy persons of the same age.

Domenico Pratico, M.D., and colleagues plan to study whether inhibitors of leukotriene receptors are potential drug candidates to prevent or slow the development of Alzheimer's disease. Using mice that have been genetically altered to express Alzheimer-like pathology, Dr. Pratico and colleagues will study whether inhibitors of the leukotriene receptor can reduce the development of Alzheimer pathology. They will also examine whether leukotriene receptor inhibitors can halt or reverse pathological effects that have already appeared. These studies will provide valuable evidence about whether leukotriene receptor inhibitors should be studied further as drug candidates for the prevention or treatment of Alzheimer's disease in humans.