Scientists could be one step closer to curing a debilitating disease after discovering a mutation in a newly discovered small protein is connected to a significant increase in the risk for Alzheimer's disease.
The protein, called SHMOOSE, is a"microprotein" encoded by a newly discovered gene within the cell's energy-producing mitochondria, researchers said. A mutation within the gene partially inactivates the SHMOOSE microprotein and is associated with a 30% higher risk for Alzheimer's disease across four different cohorts.
"This discovery opens exciting new directions for developing precision medicine-based therapies for Alzheimer's disease, focusing on SHMOOSE as a target area," said Pinchas Cohen, professor of gerontology, medicine and biological sciences and senior author of the study."Administration of SHMOOSE analogs in individuals who carry the mutation and produce the mutant protein may prove to have benefit in neurodegenerative and other diseases of aging.