Podcast: Fighting Alzheimer’s with HPC

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In this podcast, Dr. Rudy Tanzi from Harvard Medical School describes his pioneering research in Alzheimer’s disease and how HPC is critical to the path forward.

Dr. Tanzi currently spearheads the Alzheimer’s Genome Project, which recently identified four new AD gene candidates. This achievement was named one of the “Top Ten Medical Breakthroughs of 2008” by Time Magazine. In 1994, Dr. Tanzi discovered that the metals, zinc and copper are necessary for the formation of neurotoxic assemblies of the Aβ peptide, the main component of β-amyloid deposits in brains of AD patients. Based on this discovery, Dr. Tanzi developed the “Metal hypothesis of Alzheimer’s disease”, which has led to successful clinical trials for treating and preventing AD by targeting Aβ−metal interactions. These trials were carried out by Prana Biotechnology, LTD, for which Dr. Tanzi served as a co-founder.

Download the insideHPC Guide to HPC in Life Sciences.