Researchers at Texas A&M University have developed a nasal spray shown to delay disease progression in animals — fueling hope it could one day work in humans.
COLLEGE STATION, Texas — November is National Alzheimer’s Awareness Month and now a new therapy out of Texas A&M University could treat Alzheimer’s disease through a nasal spray.
Seven million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s in the U.S. right now. Something as simple as a nasal spray could provide more hope for families facing this life-changing disease.
For families facing Alzheimer’s, it’s all about time — more time with your loved ones.
“It is potentially possible to postpone the mental decline by about 10 years,” said lead researcher Ashok Shetty.
Shetty and his team have developed a nasal spray that’s shown to delay disease progression.
“It’s very promising on the results in the mouse model,” said Shetty.
The spray was found to decrease damaging inflammation in the brain and reduce the buildup of plaques in the brain. Both are key characteristics of Alzheimer’s disease. This initial phase was conducted only on mice.
Dr. Shetty plans to move on to bigger animals before potentially human clinical trials.
“We are very hopeful that it will also work on patients when it’s ready, but it’s a long road,” said Shetty.
Shetty and the team at Texas A&M have filed a patent on this application already. The work at A&M is just the latest in Alzheimer’s research progress.
Kisunla and Leqembi are two other intravenous drugs already on the market to treat and delay Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Shetty believes the potential ease of a nasal spray could be a game changer.
“Once we prove it works in Alzheimer’s patients, it can be a very simple process in terms of delivery, a simple nasal spray or intranasal in a doctor’s office,” said Shetty. “It’s a very non-invasive process.”
Shetty said he plans to test the spray on larger animals. He wants to expand the research to see what impact it could have on Alzheimer’s patients in the late stages of the disease.
KHOU 11’s Marcelino Benito led a conversation about resources, progress, support and challenges: