kw: observations, science, medicine, dementia
This article in The New Scientist describes a new test that allows an ophthalmologist to see cells dying in the retina of the eye. An abnormally high rate of apoptosis is an early warning of probable Alzheimer's dementia.
At present, the test has been developed in mice, comparing cell death in the retina between mice that are prone to Alzheimer's and mice that are not. The test involves injecting a fluorescent dye into the back of the eye, so I don't expect it to become popular!
No comments:
Post a Comment