Categories: Health

How xenon gas could transform Alzheimer’s treatment

Xenon gas is emerging as a promising treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, demonstrating benefits in preclinical testing such as reducing brain atrophy and improving neuron protection, with human trials to begin Soon.

Groundbreaking study highlights xenon gas as revolutionary potential in treatment

Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s disease is a progressive neurological disorder that primarily affects older adults, leading to memory loss, cognitive decline, and behavioral changes. It is the most common cause of dementia. The disease is characterized by the buildup of amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain, which disrupt cell function and communication. There is currently no cure and treatments focus on managing symptoms and improving quality of life.

” data-gt-translate-attributes=”({“attribute=”” tabindex=”0″ role=”link”>Alzheimer disease, demonstrating its ability to attenuate brain damage and improve cognitive functions in mouse models. An upcoming clinical trial aims to test its effectiveness in humans.

Most current treatments for Alzheimer’s disease focus on treating amyloid plaques and tau tangles in the brain. However, researchers at Mass General Brigham and Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have identified a revolutionary alternative: xenon gas.

Their study demonstrated that xenon gas inhalation reduced neuroinflammation, minimized brain atrophy, and promoted protective neuronal states in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. These results, published today (January 15) in Scientific translational medicinehave paved the way for a phase 1 clinical trial in healthy volunteers, which is expected to begin in early 2025.

Groundbreaking research and clinical trials

“This is a very novel finding that shows that simply inhaling an inert gas can have such a profound neuroprotective effect,” said lead author and co-correspondent Oleg Butovsky, PhD, of the Ann Romney Center for Disease Neurology at Brigham and Women’s Hospital (BWH). ), founding member of the Mass General Brigham Health System. “One of the major limitations in Alzheimer’s disease research and treatment is that it is extremely difficult to design drugs that can cross the blood-brain barrier, but xenon gas does. We look forward to seeing this new approach tested in humans.

“It is exciting to note that in the two animal models modeling different aspects of Alzheimer’s disease, amyloid pathology in one model and tau pathology in another model, xenon had protective effects in both situations,” said lead author and co-correspondent David M. Holtzman. , MD, from Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis.

The science behind the effects of xenon

The exact causes of Alzheimer’s disease remain unclear and there is currently no cure. More effective treatments are urgently needed. Alzheimer’s disease is marked by the buildup of proteins in the brain, such as tau and amyloid, which disrupt communication between nerve cells. Over time, this leads to progressive brain damage, neuronal loss, and ultimately death.

Microglia, the brain’s primary immune cells, act as the brain’s first line of defense, responding to any disturbance and playing a crucial role in maintaining brain function throughout life. However, when microglia become dysregulated, they contribute significantly to the progression of Alzheimer’s disease. Research from Dr. Butovsky’s laboratory has developed a method to study microglial responses to neurodegeneration, revealing that certain microglial phenotypes can be modulated to provide protective effects against Alzheimer’s disease.

Promising preclinical results with xenon

In this study, mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease were treated with xenon gas used in human medicine as an anesthetic and neuroprotectant to treat brain damage. Xenon gas penetrates the blood-brain barrier and passes directly from the bloodstream to the fluid surrounding the brain. The team found that inhaling xenon gas reduced brain atrophy and neuroinflammation and improved nest-building behaviors in mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. It also induced and increased a protective microglial response associated with amyloid clearance and improved cognition. Together, these results identify the promising potential of xenon inhalation as a therapeutic approach that may modify microglial activity and reduce neurodegeneration in Alzheimer’s disease.

Future directions and clinical potential

The clinical trial at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, which will initially only recruit healthy volunteers, is expected to begin in the coming months.

While the early phases of the clinical trial are underway to establish safety and dosing, the research team plans to continue studying the mechanisms by which xenon gas produces its effects in addition to its potential to treat other diseases such as multiple sclerosis, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and eye diseases that involve neuron loss. The team is also designing technologies to use xenon gas more efficiently and potentially recycle it.

“If the clinical trial goes well, the opportunities for using xenon gas are great,” said co-author Howard Weiner, MD, co-director of the Ann Romney Center for Neurological Diseases at BWH and principal investigator of the upcoming trial. clinical. . “This could open the door to new treatments to help patients with neurological diseases.”

Reference: “Inhaled xenon modulates microglia and ameliorates disease in mouse models of amyloidosis and tauopathy” by Brandao W, et al., January 15, 2025, Scientific translational medicine.
DOI: 10.1126/scitranslmed.adk3690

Authorship: In addition to Butovsky and Weiner, Mass General Brigham authors include Wesley Brandao, Zhuoran Yin, Kilian L. Kleemann, Madison Carpenter, Ana Durao, Jen-Li Barry, Caroline Baufeld, Dilansu Guneykaya, Xiaoming Zhang, Neta Rosenzweig, Kristen M . Pitts, Michael Aronchik, Taha Yahya, Tian Cao, Marcelo Kenzo Takahashi, Rajesh Krishnan, other authors include. Nimansha Jain, Xin Bao, Javier R. Serrano, Eric Tycksen, Alexandra Litvinchuk, Hong Jiang, Hayk Davtyan, Jason D. Ulrich, Mathew Blurton-Jones, Ilya Ilin, and David M. Holtzman.

Disclosures: Butovsky, Ilin, Weiner, Yin and Brandao are co-inventors of Patent No. 1.17/914,061 (owned by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and General Biophysics) for the use of Xe to treat neurodegenerative diseases. Butovsky is co-founder and member of the scientific advisory board of Glial Therapeutics and GliaX; collaborates with GSK and Regulus Therapeutics; receives research funding from Sanofi, GSK; and consults/received honoraria from UCB, Camp4, Ono Pharma USA, General Biophysics. Holtzman co-founded and serves on the scientific advisory board of C2N Diagnostics. Holtzman is a member of the scientific advisory board of Denali, Genentech and Cajal Neurosciences and is a consultant for Asteroid Therapeutics. Blurton-Jones co-founded and serves on the scientific advisory board of NovoGlia Inc. Ilin is the founder and CEO of General Biophysics LLC.

Funding: This study was funded by

National Institutes of Health

The National Institutes of Health (NIH) is the primary agency of the United States government responsible for biomedical and public health research. Founded in 1887, it is part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The NIH conducts its own scientific research through its Intramural Research Program (IRP) and provides significant biomedical research funding to non-NIH research facilities through its Extramural Research Program. With 27 different institutes and centers under its umbrella, the NIH covers a broad spectrum of health-related research, including specific diseases, population health, clinical research, and fundamental biological processes. Its mission is to seek fundamental knowledge about the nature and behavior of living systems and the application of this knowledge to improve health, prolong life, and reduce disease and disability.

” data-gt-translate-attributes=”({“attribute=”” tabindex=”0″ role=”link”>National Institutes of Health (NIH) (STTR R41AG073059, R01 AG051812, R01 AG054672, R01 NS088137, R01 AG075509, RF1 NS090934, P30 AG066519, U19 AG06970101); Fund to cure Alzheimer’s disease; Massachusetts Center for Alzheimer’s Disease Therapeutic Science (MassCATS); BrightFocus Foundation 2020A016806; Alzheimer’s Association Research Grant AARF-21-846786; Multiple National

Sclerosis Society FG-2108-38372; Department of Defense W81XWH-22-1-0945

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