Scripps: Team Discovers Possible New Target for Treating Brain Inflammation

A team led by scientists at The Scripps Research Institute (TSRI) has identified an enzyme that produces a class of inflammatory lipid molecules in the brain. Abnormally high levels of these molecules appear to cause a rare inherited neurodegenerative disorder, and that disorder now may be treatable if researchers can develop suitable drug candidates that inhibit this enzyme.

This treatment approach may also turn out to be useful against more common conditions that involve brain inflammation—a category that includes multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, ALS and secondary damage after stroke and head injuries. Such inflammation often fails to respond to standard anti-inflammatory drugs.