Researchers at Stanford University are reversing symptoms of Alzheimer’s in mice using a strange tactic — they’re infusing elderly mice with spinal fluid from younger ones.
Many medical breakthroughs that benefit humans are discovered by conducting trials on mice.
Though we look nothing alike, almost all the genes found in mice have similar functions to genes in humans. We get diseases for the same reasons, meaning scientists can study illnesses closely in mice to understand how they manifest in us.
One disease that has evaded scientists for decades is Alzheimer’s. Its commonality increases with age, affecting 1 in 14 people over the age of 65. But early onset Alzheimer’s is prevalent too and 1 in 20 people with the disease are below the age of 65.
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