Harnessing mRNA to prevent and slow Alzheimer's disease

mRNA Victoria funds 2 Florey projects to prevent and treat Alzheimer’s disease

Key points 

• mRNA Victoria has funded 2 Alzheimer’s disease research projects that could position Victoria as a leader in the development of mRNA-based therapies. 

• Dr Abdel Belaidi will develop an mRNA-based system that crosses the blood-brain barrier and aims to slow or even halt disease progression. 

• Dr Rebecca Nisbet will develop an mRNA vaccine that aims to prevent Alzheimer’s disease from developing. 

Florey researchers working at the cutting edge of dementia research have received funding from mRNA Victoria to develop treatments and a vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease. 

Since mRNA vaccines were developed during the COVID-19 pandemic, researchers around the world have been working on ways to harness the potential of this technology to treat neurological conditions.  

The funding, announced by Victoria’s Minister for Economic Growth and Jobs Danny Pearson MP, enables Dr Abdel Belaidi and Dr Rebecca Nisbet to take advantage of the rapid development of mRNA research to pursue their projects. 

Development of apolipoprotein E (APOE)-targeted mRNA therapeutics for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease  

“Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia and a major cause of death in Australia,” Dr Belaidi said. “Despite recent breakthroughs in mRNA technology and Alzheimer’s research, we still lack effective treatments.” 

Dr Belaidi’s work builds on the discovery that some people, despite having gene variants that cause an inherited form of Alzheimer’s disease, are protected from developing dementia. 

“These people carry rare genetic variants that protect against inherited Alzheimer's disease. I recently uncovered that APOE and APOE receptors exert an important function in the brain by protecting neurons from death. 

“I am now working to develop a therapy that will use mRNA to deliver beneficial protein variants to protect neurons and slow progression of the disease.” 

Dr Belaidi said it would be the first use of mRNA to penetrate the brain and is a technique that could be used to treat other neurological conditions. 

“This project not only has the potential to change the treatment landscape for Alzheimer’s disease but also positions Victoria as a leader in the development of mRNA-based therapies, enhancing the State's reputation as a hub for innovative biomedical research,” Dr Belaidi said. 

Development of a mRNA vaccine for the prevention of Alzheimer's disease 

"One of the causes of Alzheimer’s disease is the clumping together of a toxic molecule called amyloid-beta in the brain,” Dr Nisbet said. "Targeting amyloid-beta and clearing it from the brain shows promise as a treatment.”