Poorly insulated nerve cells promote Alzheimer’s disease in old age

Researchers have shown that defective myelin actively promotes disease-related changes in Alzheimer's disease. Certain immune cells, microglia ( yellow ), remove amyloid plaques ( magenta ) in the brain of the Alzheimer mouse ( left ). Degenerating myelin distracts them from doing so ( right ). Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences - Alzheimer's disease, an irreversible form of dementia, is considered the world's most common neurodegenerative disease. The prime risk factor for Alzheimer's is age, although it remains unclear why. It is known that the insulating layer around nerve cells in the brain, named myelin, degenerates with age. Researchers at the Max Planck Institute (MPI) for Multidisciplinary Sciences in Göttingen have now shown that such defective myelin actively promotes disease-related changes in Alzheimer's.