Diagnosing Alzheimer's earlier rather than later

09. Looking into the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, scientists led by EPFL have found clues that could help doctors diagnose or even treat Alzheimer's disease in its early stages. A hallmark of Alzheimer's disease is the appearance of plaques in the brain. The plaques are gradually made up by the aggregation of a small protein called amyloid-beta or "Abeta". Alzheimer's is usually diagnosed late, when the plaques have developed and are already causing cognitive damage like memory loss. In a large study led by EPFL, an international team of scientists from Harvard, Edinburgh and Ulm, have now found a way to detect Abeta aggregation in its early stages, which will make diagnosing and treating the disease much more effective. The study is published in the journal Alzheimer's and Dementia .