How a patch for your neck could keep Alzheimer's at bay



A skin patch that sticks on to the neck and boosts blood flow to the brain could be a radical new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease.

The electronic device, about the size of a matchbox, uses infrared light to relax and widen the carotid arteries, which run from the heart to the brain.

This boosts blood flow — previous studies have shown that increased blood flow can slow progression of the disease.

Radical new treatment: A skin patch that sticks to the neck could boost bloodflow to the brain and slow the progression of Alzheimer's

The gadget is thought to work by boosting the production of the natural body chemical nitric oxide, which helps to relax the muscles that line the arteries.

Laboratory tests show that infrared light — the kind used in night vision goggles — penetrates the skin and stimulates an enzyme in blood vessels called mitochondrial cytochrome C oxidase, which triggers the release of nitric oxide.

This makes the artery widen, increasing the space available for blood to flow through to the brain.

The stick-on patch, which would be left on for several hours at a time, contains a light-emitting device placed directly over one or both carotid arteries, which run a few millimetres beneath the skin on both sides of the neck.

Alzheimer’s affects an estimated 750,000 Britons and the number is expected to more than double in the next 40 years as the elderly population increases.

Over the past 30 years, the search for new drugs and treatments has focused on the theory that the disease is caused by the build-up of harmful deposits in the brain.

Tiny fragments of protein, called amyloid plaques, clump together and stick to the outside of brain cells, called neurons, instead of being broken down and flushed away, as in a healthy brain.

As these clumps get bigger, they stop the nerve cells from talking to each other, disrupting memory, mood and behaviour.

But in recent years, studies have suggested reduced blood flow to the brain may be a crucial factor.

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The theory is that a restricted blood supply not only deprives the brain of essential nutrients, but also disrupts the disposal of waste products that get flushed out of the body when blood carries them back to the liver.

Some researchers think this accumulation of waste products may be what eventually leads to the build-up of brain deposits.

In 2009, a major Australian study that analysed ten years of data from dozens of smaller investigations showed that taking drugs to lower blood pressure halved the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

Researchers from the University of New South Wales said that high blood pressure stiffens arteries and restricts blood flow to the parts of the brain that govern memory.

Doctors already know that another disease, called vascular dementia, is caused by poor blood supply to the brain, often due to smoking, a high-fat diet and lack of exercise. The manufacturers of the neck patch, U.S. firm Clarimedix Inc, say that if trials are successful it could be available for use within two to three years.

Dr Simon Ridley, head of research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said it was too early to say if the patch would be a new line of treatment.

He added that the link between blood supply to the brain and Alzheimer’s is attracting great scientific interest.

‘There is a drive in research towards understanding how blood flow problems are connected to dementia and increased inflammation in the brain,’ he says.

‘There are many contributing factors to developing dementia, and blood flow may prove to be an important one.’

Meanwhile, research suggests a jab in the neck may be a way of cooling hot flushes.

In a new clinical trial, doctors are injecting menopausal women with local anaesthetic.

The team at Northwestern University, Chicago, will treat 40 women — 20 with a solution of anaesthetic lidocaine and 20 with a placebo.

The jabs will go into the stellate ganglion — a star-shaped bundle of nerves on either side of the voice box, at the base of the neck.

These nerves are thought to be involved in temperature regulation, and the medics believe that numbing them may reduce the frequency and severity of hot flushes.

Eight out of ten women going through the menopause experience symptoms, with hot flushes being one of the most common.

In these episodes, there is a sudden feeling of heat that spreads downwards from the upper body.

Experts believe they are caused by the fluctuating hormone levels that accompany the menopause, which affect the body’s temperature regulation system.