Animals to human models: Indian scientists question new approach in Alzheimer's research (Health Feature)

With animal-based studies failing to hit the bull's eye in finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease (AD), the clock is ticking for over 3.7 million Indians suffering from dementia. While a British neurochemist has called for switching over to "state-of-the-art human biology based techniques", Indian researchers feel a lot of rough edges need to be trimmed.

In a new paper, a leading British neurochemist claimed research centred on animal models could have "delayed progress in developing effective treatments for humans".

Arguing that "a decade of AD research dominated by artificially creating symptoms in genetically modified mice has failed to find a single cure that works in human patients", Gill Langley, senior science adviser to Humane Society International (HSI), has called for a paradigm shift.

A look at the data available sheds light on the magnitude of the problem.

According to the Dementia India Report, in 2010, around 3.7 million were affected and this is likely to double by 2030 and triple by 2050. AD claims around 500,000 lives globally each year while statistics show there is a new case of dementia somewhere in the world every four seconds.

Moreover, age is the "single-most risk factor" for the disease, which happens to be the most common form of dementia in old people (above the age of 65) that gets worse over time.

These numbers will only go up because of a steady growth in the older population. Add to it the lack of proper policies and healthcare strategies for the elderly.

Langley's study, published in the Drug Discovery Today journal, therefore, stressed on the need to introduce "next-generation tools" like functioning human brain cells in a test tube, neuro-imaging and genomics as the cornerstone for AD research. This could be a precursor to "personalised medicine tailored to maximise benefits to individual patients".

IANS spoke to a section of researchers associated with AD research in India. Though many were hopeful, most highlighted certain basic challenges that first have to be met.

"The idea would definitely be welcome. It would expedite the process and new techniques like neuro-imaging could be a great aid in research," Amit Dias, coordinator of the medical and scientific advisory panel for dementia at the Alzheimer's and Related Disorders Society of India (ARDSI), told IANS over the phone from Goa.

Welcoming the idea in the light of customised drugs, inorganic chemistry researcher Abhishek Dey, at the Indian Association for the Cultivation of Science (IACS) here, stressed on non-invasive methods and expressed concern over cultivating brain cells in a culture dish.

"One also has to appreciate the fact that a human cell in a dish is in a different environment than a human cell in a tissue," Dey told IANS, pressing for instating protocols that qualify people with impaired cogitative and cognitive functions as willing cell donors.

Figures show India spends Rs.147 billion ($3.5 billion) in medical costs, care and services for patients with dementia and this is likely to treble by 2030.

Factoring in the financial burden, Alokparna Sengupta, HSI's Be Cruelty-Free India campaign manager, said: "So we would argue that it's economically feasible for a country like India to switch from animal to human biology-based models."

Though the initial expense of instating hi-tech systems and technological expertise would be high, that would be balanced by developing long-term solutions, said Dias.

However, researcher Sarika Gupta, at the National Institute of Immunology, New Delhi, said given the multifaceted nature of AD - involving other organs like the brain and liver - such improvisations "will not solve the issue".

"Transgenic mouse models are still best suited for evaluating drug potency for countering AD progression at the laboratory level. A serious discussion and planning of a new strategy for basic medical research and drug discovery is urgently needed as personalised medical treatment is far from reality in India," Gupta told IANS in an email.

(Sahana Ghosh can be contacted at sahana.g@ians.in)