New study reveals the tau structure that makes CTE unique
A study published last week in the scientific journal Nature provides new evidence of the tau formations in the brains of individuals with CTE and how they differ from other diseases.
Researchers found identical tau structures in three CTE brains, which were different than the structures found in brains with diseases like Alzheimer’s or Pick’s. They also confirmeddementia pugilistica, commonly referred to as Boxer’s Dementia or Punch-Drunk Syndrome, is the same disease as CTE. These findings create a consensus for what CTE looks like and will be a major aid in designing tools for early diagnosis and timely treatment moving forward.
“Both [Alzheimer’s and CTE] result in dementia eventually, but they do so likely by different molecular mechanisms…It’s pretty damn convincing to me.” said Dr. Lee Goldstein, Associate Professor at the Boston University CTE Center.
This encouraging research is another stepping stone on the road to understanding how CTE forms, and most importantly, how we can prevent and cure it in the future.