Diabetes pill 'miracle Alzheimer's cure'RSS Feed

Cheap medication could prevent deterioration of the brain in old age, helping those with brain injury such as Alzheimer's disease, according to new research.

Professor Susann Schweiger from the University of Dundee had a eureka moment cycling to work when she realised diabetes drug Metformin could be used to help those with brain injury.

Experiments on mouse brain cells showed that Metformin reduced the tangled formation, affecting tau tangles - toxic protein that builds up in the brains of Alzheimer's sufferers.

As the drug has already been approved for use on elderly patients with diabetes, it could be on the market sooner than new drugs, which can take up to 20 years to be deemed safe.

Ms Schweiger told HeraldScotland: "The idea came to me spontaneously. It just came into my mind. This is how a scientist works. The brain is always working on a problem, even during quiet times. Once I had quiet time, it occurred to me that metformin should have the effect we were looking for."

The pill Metformin is in the class of drugs known as biguanides and is used to regulate blood-sugar levels.

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