A recent visit to an operating theatre in Edinburgh has offered a rare, up-close view of how cutting-edge neuroscience and surgery are being used to deepen understanding of Alzheimer’s disease, the most common form of dementia. While a definitive cure remains out of reach, researchers say new approaches and early breakthroughs are building hope that treatments will continue to improve.
At Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, a piece of brain tissue normally treated as medical waste during surgery was instead collected for research with the patient’s consent. Neurosurgeons worked to remove a tumour deep within the brain, drilling through the cortex the outer layer responsible for memory, language and thinking before setting aside a small sample for study. (
This tissue is then transported to the University of Edinburgh laboratory, where scientists hope it will help unlock answers to one of medicine’s toughest questions: Can Alzheimer’s ever be cured? By studying living human brain cells exposed to toxic proteins linked to the disease, researchers are gaining insights that have been out of reach in traditional laboratory models.
One of the researchers, Dr Claire Durrant, describes the tissue samples as “precious gifts” from patients undergoing surgery. The samples are preserved in artificial cerebrospinal fluid and sliced into extremely thin pieces so scientists can watch, in real time, how Alzheimer’s-associated proteins such as amyloid and tau damage synapses, the crucial connections between neurons.
This technique marks a significant development in dementia research. It allows scientists to see how disease processes unfold in actual human brain tissue, rather than relying solely on animal models or cell cultures treated in artificial conditions. By observing the progressive destruction of synaptic networks, researchers hope to find points where interventions can slow or even stop the disease’s advance.
Around one million people in the UK live with some form of dementia, with Alzheimer’s disease accounting for most cases. The condition is characterised by progressive memory loss, cognitive decline and behavioural changes, which result from the accumulation of abnormal proteins in the brain.
Despite decades of research, there is still no cure. However, the field has seen important milestones in recent years. Two drugs, lecanemab and donanemab, have shown that it is possible to slow the progression of Alzheimer’s a significant scientific achievement even if their real-world benefits are modest and not yet widely available on national health services.
These drugs target amyloid, one of the proteins that forms sticky plaques in Alzheimer’s brains. Clinical trials have demonstrated that reducing amyloid buildup can slow the loss of cognitive function, though they do not stop the disease altogether. Researchers caution that the effects seen so far are limited and that much more work remains before therapies can substantially alter the disease’s course.
Beyond amyloid, scientists are investigating other biological factors. For example, studies are looking at tau protein accumulation, inflammation, the interactions between immune cells in the brain and vascular health all of which appear to play roles in disease progression. This broader understanding suggests that future treatments may need to operate on multiple fronts rather than focusing on a single target.
Professor Tara Spires-Jones, the director of the Centre for Discovery Brain Science at the University of Edinburgh, says that Alzheimer’s will likely require a multi-layered strategy. She outlines a possible future where:
- Drugs meaningfully slow or halt disease progression in the short term,
- Tools emerge to prevent dementia before symptoms begin, and
- In the long term, treatments are developed that can cure people who are already symptomatic, although this remains the hardest challenge.
Professor Spires-Jones suggests that truly “life-changing” therapies might be within reach within five to 10 years, particularly if early detection continues to improve and if researchers can combine medical innovation with strong clinical evidence.
One of the key barriers in Alzheimer’s research has been the brain’s complexity. The organ’s intricate web of cells, connections and chemical processes makes it difficult to model accurately outside of living human tissue. The techniques now in use in Edinburgh and other centres help bridge that gap by providing real human biology for researchers to study.
Such work is supported by charitable efforts, including those backed by the Race Against Dementia charity, which was co-founded by former Formula 1 champion Jackie Stewart. These organisations fund innovative research that might not otherwise receive traditional scientific financing and help bring new ideas from the lab toward clinical application.
Optimism in the scientific community is building, but researchers are careful to balance hope with realism. The fact that Alzheimer’s may one day be preventable or even curable does not mean that a breakthrough is imminent. Many clinical trials are ongoing, and every promising result needs rigorous testing before it can become a treatment available to patients around the world.
Meanwhile, Alzheimer’s disease remains a major public health challenge with significant social and economic impacts. As populations age globally, the number of people living with dementia is expected to rise sharply, underscoring the urgency of research that can change the trajectory of the disease.
In the operating room and the laboratory alike, scientists are pushing the boundaries of what is known about Alzheimer’s. Collecting and studying living human brain tissue offers a unique window into the mechanics of the disease, and early insights are helping refine hypotheses and therapeutic approaches.
For many researchers, witnessing the destruction of synapses in real time offers both a sobering reminder of the disease’s complexity and a source of motivation. By understanding exactly how proteins like amyloid and tau interfere with neural networks, scientists hope to uncover the key to halting or reversing the process.
While there is no definitive cure yet, the combination of live-tissue research, new drug developments and a broader scientific focus on the brain’s entire biological environment signals a new era in Alzheimer’s study. These efforts reflect a growing belief among scientists that meaningful progress if not a cure could arrive within the next decade. In the meantime, individuals, families and healthcare systems continue to grapple with the realities of dementia care, even as the scientific community works toward therapies that could transform lives.
