Save the mind by saving the body

Most researchers seeking to cure or prevent Alzheimer ’s disease target ways to prevent or remove plaque that builds up in the brain’s blood vessels. But researchers at the Salk Institute took a different approach: Instead of taking on the disease directly, they decided to cure its chief cause — old age.

Treated with an experimental drug called J147 (left), mice showed healthier blood vessels in their brains as well as better memory and thought processes, more fluid movement, and less leakage in their brains’ blood vessels, a common ailment in the elderly.