James Madison's glass flute TOP NEWS Alzheimer's may stem from defective genes Staff Report U .Va. Health System researchers have linked the abnormalities in the function of Alzheimer's mitochondrial genes, first described by U.Va.
Mitochondria are the batteries of the cells that provide usable energy.
Their genes are small pieces of circular DNA that are passed from mother to children. Abnormalities in mitochondrial genes have been associated with rare brain diseases in children and adults. Center for the Study of Neurodegen-erative Diseases and principal investigator of the research, published in the August issue of Annals of Neurology. Bennett's team linked the plaques with the mitochondrial abnormalities. Although a pharmaceutical company recently announced it had begun testing a vaccine for Alzheimer's on human patients, Bennett said the vaccine won't prevent the process, but because it removes the plaques, it might be helpful in preventing the symptoms.