Age-related illnesses in the spotlight

Scientists hope to gain insight into age-related ailments such as dementia by studying proteins linked to the conditions. The University study aims to look at why vital proteins sometimes clump together as we age, preventing biological processes from running smoothly. This clumping, or aggregation as it is known, occurs in many proteins. It is characteristic of several conditions related to ageing, such as late-onset diabetes, sight loss, Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia. Changing shapes. The study, involving physicists and chemists at the University, will look at the shape changes that can occur in proteins and how these changes aid the aggregation process. Understanding how the proteins bind to one another will help in the development of drugs to prevent aggregation occurring.