There's a traffic jam in brain!

Memories, the greatest gift to mankind, shape who we are. Now imagine losing them—this is the what happens in Alzheimer’s disease, the leading cause of dementia, affecting millions globally without any effective treatment. In Australia alone, over a million people are projected to be affected by 2058. This is where my research comes into play. We are developing a new drug similar in action to a constituent found in green tea (epigallocatechingallate) that targets what we call as amyloid fibrils—sticky clumps that clog brain cells. Think of them like a never-ending traffic jam on a late evening drive towards home. Our drug clears this up, helping brain cells communicate again where a healthy brain can now store and form all the memories efficiently. Cherishing memories—that’s what our drug is here for.

记忆，作为人类最珍贵的馈赠，塑造了我们的身份认同。试想失去记忆的场景——这正是阿尔茨海默病（Alzheimer’s disease）的表现：它是痴呆症的首要诱因，全球数百万患者深受其害，却尚无有效疗法。仅在澳大利亚，预计到2058年就将有超百万人受其影响。我的研究正是为此而生。我们正研发一种新型药物，其作用机制与绿茶中的表没食子儿茶素没食子酸酯（epigallocatechingallate）相似，靶向作用于我们所称的淀粉样纤维（amyloid fibrils）——即堵塞脑细胞的黏性团块。不妨将其比作归家途中深夜里永无止境的交通堵塞。我们的药物可清除这些团块，助力脑细胞恢复通讯，使健康大脑得以高效储存与形成记忆。守护记忆——这正是我们药物的使命所在。