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Antihypertensive drugs may protect against Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer's mice significantly benefited from taking a drug used to treat hypertension.

Two mouse experiments have found that the drug carvedilol, prescribed for the treatment of hypertension, significantly improved synaptic transmission in Alzheimer's disease-type brains, and at a behavioral level significantly improved learning and memory.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2010-06/tmsh-adm062310.php

Reference

Wang, J., Ono, K., Dickstein, D. L., Arrieta-Cruz, I., Zhao, W., Qian, X., … Pasinetti, G. M. Carvedilol as a potential novel agent for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. Neurobiology of Aging, In Press, Corrected Proof. Retrieved from http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/B6T09-50F45SF-2/2/f58f3a17c55d937c10625bf4cb9c5421

Arrieta-Cruz, I. et al. 2010. Carvedilol Reestablishes Long-Term Potentiation in a Mouse Model of Alzheimer’s Disease. Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, 21 (2), in press.

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