Immunotherapy as a treatment strategy for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease

Breukink, F.P. (2024) Immunotherapy as a treatment strategy for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s Disease. Bachelor's Thesis, Biology.

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Abstract

Every day millions of individuals are affected by Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease. Currently available treatments solely treat the symptoms of these neurodegenerative diseases, rather than targeting the underlying causes. Immunotherapy has emerged as a possible treatment, targeting the protein aggregates associated with the pathogenesis of these diseases. Passive or active immunotherapy can be used to administer target specific antibodies, which are able to bind and remove AB plaques, tau protein, alpha synuclein and inflammatory mediators involved in neurodegeneration. This literature research provides an overview of the immunotherapeutic strategies currently studied in clinical trials for AD and PD. While results of most study outcomes show the ability of these drugs to reduce the levels of their target proteins, in many cases this does not translate to a significant effect on the clinical progression of the disease. This might be due to the lack of knowledge on the interactions between the involved proteins and the insufficient understanding of the main disease driving pathways. Additionally, more research should be done on developing methods for early diagnosis before the onset of clinical symptoms of AD and PD. Nevertheless, immunotherapy as a treatment for AD and PD is a promising strategy which could lay the foundation for future research into the treatment of these neurodegenerative diseases.

Item Type:	Thesis (Bachelor's Thesis)
Supervisor name:	Zee, E.A. van der
Degree programme:	Biology
Thesis type:	Bachelor's Thesis
Language:	English
Date Deposited:	07 May 2024 11:24
Last Modified:	07 May 2024 11:24
URI:	https://fse.studenttheses.ub.rug.nl/id/eprint/32370

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