Medical News Today -- A new drug that has completed phase 2 trials in the UK and Singapore is being hailed as a major breakthrough in the treatment of Alzheimer’s, as it appeared to slow the progress of the disease by as much as 81 per cent over a year, compared to placebo. Methylthioninium chloride (MTC) blocks the accumulation of tau protein tangles inside brain cells, one of the principal characteristics of the disease that was originally discovered by Alois Alzheimer 100 years ago. The results of the trial, which was led by Claude M Wischik, Professor in Mental Health, University of Aberdeen, UK, and Chairman, TauRx Therapeutics, Singapore, were presented in Chicago yesterday, 29th July, at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference on Alzheimer’s Disease (ICAD) 2008.
