Alzheimer’s mutations found in brain cells

WASHINGTON – The genetic mutations that lie behind most cases of Alzheimer’s disease may be found inside cell powerhouses known as mitochondria, US researchers said yesterday.

They said they found mutations in mitochondrial DNA in 65 percent of patients in a study who died of Alzheimer’s, and none of the patients who died of something else. Most DNA is carried on the chromosomes.But an important form is found in the mitochondria of cells, which are structures that help provide energy.Douglas Wallace of the Centre for Molecular and Mitochondrial Medicine and Genetics at the University of California at Irvine and colleagues looked at the brains of 23 people who died of Alzheimer’s and 40 people who died free of dementia.”The question remains: is the increase in (the mitochondrial DNA) mutations seen in AD brains simply a reflection of accelerated aging, or is it a distinct pathological phenomenon?” they wrote.- Nampa-ReutersMost DNA is carried on the chromosomes.But an important form is found in the mitochondria of cells, which are structures that help provide energy.Douglas Wallace of the Centre for Molecular and Mitochondrial Medicine and Genetics at the University of California at Irvine and colleagues looked at the brains of 23 people who died of Alzheimer’s and 40 people who died free of dementia.”The question remains: is the increase in (the mitochondrial DNA) mutations seen in AD brains simply a reflection of accelerated aging, or is it a distinct pathological phenomenon?” they wrote.- Nampa-Reuters