Popular Asthma Drug May Effectively Treat Alzheimer's Disease

According to researchers at Temple University's School of Medicine, the popular asthma drug, Zileuton, has shown potential in treating Alzheimer’s disease. This medication works by reducing the amount of amyloid beta that develops and accumulates in the aging brain. Amyloid beta is a peptide that has been known to be involved in the development of Alzheimer's disease.

“In previous studies, the Temple researchers discovered that 5-lipoxygenase, an enzyme long known to exist in the brain, controls the activation state of gamma secretase, another enzyme that is necessary and responsible for the final production of amyloid beta. When produced in excess, amyloid beta causes neuronal death and forms plaques in the brain. The amount of these amyloid plaques in the brain is used as a measurement of the severity of Alzheimer's.”

“Zileuton (trade name ZYFLO) is an orally active inhibitor of 5-lipoxygenase, and thus inhibits leukotrienes (LTB4, LTC4, LTD4, and LTE4) formation.“

Domenico Praticò and fellow researchers tested the effects of this drug on genetically engineered mice with Alzheimer's disease. Results showed that amyloid production and build-up in the brain was reduced by 50% by treating the mice with Zileuton.

Researchers are already aware of substances that can block gamma secretase’s production of amyloid, however completely eliminating a vital function may result in other health problems, such as developing cancer. “Unlike classical gamma secretase inhibitors, Zileuton only modulates the protein expression levels, which keeps some of its vital functions in tact while blocking many of its bad effects, which in this case is the development of the amyloid plaques.”

Fortunately, if clinic trials effectively demonstrate Zileuton’s ability to treat Alzheimer’s disease, the medication could be readily available to patients as it is already FDA-approved and on the market.

In addition, further research may uncover treatments for other untreatable diseases resulting from amyloid plaques accumulating in the brain, such as cerebral amyloid angiopathy, a neurological condition that occurs when amyloid proteins build up on the walls of the arteries in the brain, which increases the risk of hemorrhagic stroke and dementia.

Asthma Drug Could Help Control or Treat Alzheimer's Disease
Zileuton
Cerebral amyloid angiopathy

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Voice Pitch May Predict Infidelity

According to a recent study, the pitch of one’s voice, as heard by the opposite sex, can give away their likelihood of cheating on their partner. For instance, women believe that cheating is more likely, the lower a man’s voice, whereas men believe that cheating is more likely, the higher a women’s voice.

"In terms of sexual strategy, we found that men and women will use voice pitch as a warning sign of future betrayal. So the more attractive the voice -- a higher pitch for women and lower pitch for men -- the more likely the chances he or she will cheat," says Jillian O'Connor, a graduate student in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour at McMaster University and lead author of the study.

In the study, subjects were asked to listen to recordings of a male and female with higher pitched voices, followed by recordings of a male and female with lower pitched voices. From these clips, participants were then asked to evaluate the couples by deciding which of the two were most likely to cheat.

"The reason voice pitch influences perceptions of cheating is likely due to the relationship between pitch, hormones and infidelity," explains David Feinberg, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour and advisor on the study.

Physiologically, men with higher testosterone levels typically have lower pitched voices and women with higher estrogen levels tend to have higher pitched voices. Meanwhile, higher levels of such hormones in men and women tend to be associated with elevated sex drive, as well as, adultery, according to this study.

In a nut shell, this study was seeking to uncover, from an evolutionary perspective, some sort of motivating factor in how people choose their mates so that any future financial or emotional costs associated with infidelity can be avoided.

At this moment, most of us are asking ourselves how this research might apply to individuals of other sexual orientations, in addition to comparing our partner’s voice to others…

Can You Predict Your Mate Will Cheat by Their Voice?

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