Summarised by Centrist
A leading neuroscientist says Alzheimer’s disease may not be a brain disorder in the traditional sense, but rather an autoimmune condition caused by the body’s own defence system attacking the brain.
Professor Donald Weaver of the Krembil Brain Institute argues that the long-dominant theory—blaming abnormal clumps of beta-amyloid protein—misses the true nature of the disease.
Weaver’s research suggests beta-amyloid (a protein fragment that can accumulate in the brain and form plaques, which are linked to the development of Alzheimer’s disease) is not a toxic by-product but a normal and important part of the brain’s immune system.
Under stress, such as head trauma or infection, beta-amyloid responds like any other immune molecule. But because the membranes of bacteria and brain cells are so similar, it can’t tell the difference—leading it to mistakenly target healthy brain tissue.
This chronic misfire, Weaver says, results in the slow and progressive brain damage seen in Alzheimer’s. In this model, the disease is effectively an autoimmune condition—like rheumatoid arthritis or lupus—where the body turns on itself.
Weaver believes this explains why decades of research targeting beta-amyloid have produced no effective cure. Even the approval of aducanumab by the FDA in 2021, based on shaky evidence, has not altered outcomes for patients.
Dementia now affects over 50 million people globally, with one new case diagnosed every three seconds.
