Treatment possibilities of Alzheimer's disease

A brief summary of the current treatment of Alzheimer disease (AD) (cholinergic replacement therapy, influence of glutamatergic neurotransmission, treatment based on the beta-amyloid cascade theory, antioxidants, anti-inflammatory drugs) clearly proves that the applied strategies are practically inefficient. We describe therefore the rationale and design of a reasonable clinical trial to test the validity of Knoll's concept that the administration of a synthetic mesencephalic enhancer substance prior to the precipitation of the symptoms is our only chance to significantly reduce the prevalence of the two main neurodegenerative disorders AD and Parkinson's disease (PD). Considering that in the population over 65 there are substantial sex (68% female, 32% male) and geographical (highest rate: 10% in USA) differences in the incidence of AD, we propose to perform the clinical trial in 75-85 year old females in the USA. Individuals without (Group 1) and with (Group 2) predisposition to AD should be selected. One third in each group should be treated daily with placebo, (-)-deprenyl (1 mg) and (-)-BPAP (1 mg), respectively. Series of studies proved already the protective effect of the synthetic mesencephalic enhancer substances against age-related neurodegenerative changes in the brain. We may therefore expect a significant difference in the placebo versus drug treated groups in the number of individuals who will precipitate with the passing of time the symptoms of AD or PD. The introduction of a safe and efficient prophylactic therapy that significantly decreases the prevalence of AD is a necessity which cannot be further postponed.