Transgenic studies formation

Transgenic mice that overexpress Ab have been used to determine whether vaccines could be produced to reduce the concentration of the peptide in patients with AD. Experimental studies have shown that Ab peptide immunization reduces the cognitive impairments and the formation of plaques in rodent models of AD. This finding led to the development of vaccines for human use and while the phase 1 trials in the UK suggested that the vaccine was safe, more extensive studies in Europe led to the termination of the clinical trials because 5% of the patients develop meningioencephalitis. More studies are presently underway to induce an immune response against Ab without initiating T-cell activation which underlies the inflammatory process in the brain. 

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