Synchrotron Light helps detect Alzheimer’s disease early

Researchers have had very limited success in finding reasons that trigger an Alzheimer’s disease in a human being. The difficulty lies in the fact that that the Aβ plaques formed in the brain of an Alzheimer patient are almost impossible to detect in the early stages. The detection of these plaques could now be possible with the use of Synchrotron X Ray beams. The technique demonstrated by U.S. Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory succeeded in viewing the Aβ plaques using the diffraction enhanced imaging (DEI). This x-ray technique is also used in detecting breast tumors and has beams which are thousand times more powerful than the regular ones.

synchrotron light

The experiment conducted on the mouse revealed the entire brain with bones, soft tissue structures and the Aβ plaques. Sadly, the rays are too harmful to be used on human beings but even then the structure and development of these plaques can now be understood. It will not be long before the researchers could manipulate these beams to be used successfully on humans. We have our fingers crossed!

Via: Inventorspot