New Alzheimer's study escalates the old amyloid-tau debate

While biotech companies herald early-stage advances in Alzheimer's disease R&D, neuroscientists remain sharply divided as to just which protein--beta amyloid or tau--most contributes to the disorder's memory-destroying effect, and a new study has rekindled the debate. In research published in the journal Brain, Mayo Clinic investigators examined more than the brains of more than 3,600 patients suspected of having Alzheimer's and concluded that tau, not amyloid, levels were the best indicators of cognitive decline. The research comes just days after Biogen ($BIIB) watched its stock price jump on positive Phase I data for an antibody that targets amyloid, which has long been a more popular target for drug developers. More