New developments in the field of Alzheimer's research could lead to finding a cure for the devastating mental decline of Alzheimer's patients and even distinguish which people are in the early stages of dementia.

One of the most promising discoveries is the vaccine developed by researchers at the University of Sydney's Brain and Mind Research Institute (BMRI). The vaccine targets a protein known as tau and also prevents the formation of neurofibrillary tangles in the brain. The tau protein is commonly known as a primary marker of Alzheimer's disease.

"Our study is the first to show that a vaccine targeting the tau protein can be effective once the disease has already set in," said Associate Professor Lars Ittner, from the Alzheimer's and Parkinson's Disease Laboratory and lead author of the study.

"The vaccine appears to have a preventative effect: slowing the development of further tangles, rather than clearing existing ones, but the exact mechanism involved is not yet understood," he added.

The researchers have successfully tested the vaccine on the brain of a mouse with Alzheimer's and the results were promising. The vaccine prevented the formation of neurofibrillary tangles in the mouse's brain. The research team is already collaborating with the U.S. pharmaceutical industry to develop the vaccine for humans. The study is published online in the scientific journal PLoS ONE.

Another team of researcher from San Diego is developing a drug that can stop brain damage from Alzheimer's disease. Scientists at the Salk Institute for Biological Studies tested the drug called J147 on mice and found that the drug improved memory in the mice and prevented brain damage from the disease.

"J147 enhances memory in both normal and Alzheimer's mice and also protects the brain from the loss of synaptic connections," said David Schubert, the head of Salk's Cellular Neurobiology Laboratory, whose team developed the new drug. "No drugs on the market for Alzheimer's have both of these properties."

The drug still needs to be tested on humans but Salk researchers think it could potentially cure the disease in humans. The scientists also believe that J147 could treat other brain disorders including Huntington's disease, Parkinson's disease and ALS. The team's findings are also published in PLoS ONE.

Meanwhile researchers in Finland have found a way to determine which people are in the early stages of dementia. Researchers from the VTT Technical Research Centre discovered that Alzheimer's disease is preceded by a molecular signature that could be detected by a simple biochemical assay procedure.

The researchers tested 143 people with mild cognitive impairment, 37 people with Alzheimer's and 46 healthy people. After 31 months 52 people who had mild cognitive impairment had developed Alzheimer's disease. The researchers found that those patients who developed Alzheimer's had changes in the chemical make-up of their blood. Testing patients who might develop Alzheimer's will help the patients' make the necessary lifestyle changes. The researchers are hoping their findings will help in finding new therapeutic and treatment options. The study is published in the journal Translational Psychiatry.

Alzheimer's is one of the most prevalent brain disorders in the world. There are an estimated 5.4 million Alzheimer's patients worldwide. According to Alzheimer's Australia there is an estimated 266,574 people with dementia in Australia. This is projected to increase to 553,285 people by 2030.