Via EurekAlert!: "One of the earliest known impairments caused by Alzheimer's disease - loss of sense of smell - can be restored by removing a plaque-forming protein in a mouse model of the disease. The study confirms that the protein, called amyloid beta, causes the loss. ... The evidence indicates we can use the sense of smell to determine if someone may get Alzheimer's disease, and use changes in sense of smell to begin treatments, instead of waiting until someone has issues learning and remembering. We can also use smell to see if therapies are working. ... just a tiny amount of amyloid beta - too little to be seen on today's brain scans - causes smell loss in mouse models. Amyloid beta plaque accumulated first in parts of the brain associated with smell, well before accumulating in areas associated with cognition and coordination. Early on, the olfactory bulb, where odor information from the nose is processed, became hyperactive. Over time, however, the level of amyloid beta increased in the olfactory bulb and the bulb became hypoactive. Despite spending more time sniffing, the mice failed to remember smells and became incapable of telling the difference between odors. The same pattern is seen in people with the disease. They become unresponsive to smells as they age. ... The team then sought to reverse the effects. Mice were given a synthetic liver x-receptor agonist, a drug that clears amyloid beta from the brain. After two weeks on the drug, the mice could process smells normally. After withdrawal of the drug for one week, impairments returned."

Link: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-11/cwru-eso113011.php

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