{"id":36899,"date":"2026-09-19T12:38:00","date_gmt":"2026-09-19T16:38:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/?p=36899"},"modified":"2026-09-17T11:11:39","modified_gmt":"2026-09-17T15:11:39","slug":"dna-damage-alzheimers-mice-spinal-drug","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/dna-damage-alzheimers-mice-spinal-drug\/36899\/","title":{"rendered":"A drug first developed for spinal cord injuries reduced DNA damage and brain inflammation in mice with Alzheimer\u2019s, and because it already passed a safety trial in 109 people, researchers believe it could reach patients faster"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

An experimental drug first developed for spinal cord injuries has reduced DNA damage and signs of brain inflammation in a mouse model of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. Researchers at King\u2019s College London<\/a> say KCL-286 could offer a broader treatment strategy by targeting several disease-related processes rather than just one.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

There is a head start, though. KCL-286 has already completed an early safety trial in healthy volunteers, giving researchers human data to build on. That is not evidence that it preserves memory or slows Alzheimer\u2019s, but it could help move the drug toward further testing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why looking beyond amyloid matters<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Alzheimer\u2019s research has long focused on amyloid-beta and tau<\/a>, proteins whose abnormal buildup is associated with the loss of brain cells. The King\u2019s team points to DNA damage and inflammation as additional targets because both can appear early in the disease. According to the university, approved amyloid-targeting drugs<\/a> have delivered limited but measurable clinical benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read More: Six years after paralysis, brain implants restored movement and touch; the bigger surprise was what remained when the implants stopped<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTo develop an effective treatment for Alzheimer\u2019s disease, we need to tackle multiple aspects of the disease,\u201d said Natasha Hill, one of the study\u2019s first authors. The idea is to influence several connected biological problems, not assume that targeting a single protein will address everything.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

How KCL-286 aims to help cells repair DNA<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

KCL-286 activates retinoic acid receptor beta (RAR\u03b2)<\/a>, a protein involved in signaling linked to vitamin A. Activating this target can influence cellular repair pathways, which is why the researchers are investigating effects beyond a single Alzheimer\u2019s hallmark. These findings concern KCL-286, not vitamin A supplements, which were not tested in this experiment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The damage of interest involves both strands of DNA breaking. Neuroscience professor Jonathan Corcoran compared it to a rope cut all the way through, rather than one merely fraying at the edges. The researchers found evidence that KCL-286 helps cells address those breaks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier work on neuropathic pain<\/a> had suggested the drug could promote this kind of repair. The same team had also identified molecular overlap between spinal cord injury and Alzheimer\u2019s, giving them a reason to test whether the approach could work in a different setting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What the mouse study actually measured<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The paper reports that male mice received KCL-286 injections three times a week, from 15 to 18 months of age. There were only three animals per group, making this a small study that needs follow-up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Brain tissue showed lower levels of a marker associated with DNA breaks and increased levels of the repair protein BRCA1<\/a>. The DNA-damage marker fell but remained above levels in mice without the Alzheimer\u2019s-related genetic changes, so this was not a complete return to normal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read More: Silencing ancient brainstem neurons made mice far more distractible, the first evidence that evolution kept an old attention circuit alongside newer brain systems<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Researchers also observed changes in microglia and astrocytes<\/a>, cells involved in the brain\u2019s immune and support systems. Their appearance became more consistent with reduced inflammatory activation, adding another piece of evidence for the drug\u2019s effects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What the human trial does and does not tell us<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The separate phase 1 trial<\/a>, published in 2023, enrolled 109 healthy men and assessed safety, tolerability, and how the body handled the drug. Its authors reported that KCL-286 was well tolerated under the tested conditions, with repeated dosing studied for up to seven days. It did not evaluate Alzheimer\u2019s treatment benefits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Researchers also found evidence that the oral drug engaged its intended receptor in white blood cells. That is useful development information, but it is not the same as showing DNA repair inside a patient\u2019s brain or improved thinking and memory<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Professor Corcoran believes the completed safety testing could shorten the development path. Still, those results do not establish long-term safety or effectiveness in people with Alzheimer\u2019s, a different population from the healthy volunteers who participated in the trial.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What would make this meaningful for patients?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Maria Goncalves, who managed the drug\u2019s development, emphasized its \u201cpotential as a disease-modifying therapy.\u201d In everyday terms, that means changing the course of Alzheimer\u2019s<\/a> rather than only easing symptoms. For families, the meaningful test would be whether people retain memory and everyday abilities, not simply whether a laboratory marker moves in the right direction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Read More: A man with severe paralysis caused by ALS used a brain implant at home for more than 3,800 hours and was able to convert his attempts to speak into text, computer-generated information, and a voice similar to his own<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Future studies would need to establish which patients might benefit, when treatment should begin, and whether any improvements last. Those questions remain open, and the existing safety work cannot answer them on its own.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is the gap future research must close before these findings can support treatment decisions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The study was published on July 8, 2026, in FEBS Open Bio<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

An experimental drug first developed for spinal cord injuries has reduced DNA damage and signs of brain inflammation in a<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":14,"featured_media":36946,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-36899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science","resize-featured-image"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/14"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=36899"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36955,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/36899\/revisions\/36955"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/36946"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=36899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=36899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.ecoticias.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=36899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}