Scientists report that the use of tomato as a carrier for an oral vaccine has shown promising results in fighting Alzheimer's disease.

According to a study published in the Biotechnology Letters, scientists are trying to develop a plant-derived vaccine for Alzheimer's disease after finding that beta-amyloid (a toxic insoluble fibrous protein in the brain that is an AD characteristic) is toxic for animal cells.

Previous studies had reported that reducing the beta-amyloid accumulation can prevent from brain cell death and delay the onset of Alzheimer's.

Korea Research Institute of Bioscience and Biotechnology (KRIBB) researchers claimed that tomato is a good choice for producing such a vaccine as it can be consumed without heating, which destroys the vaccine's immunological stimulation potential.

Findings showed strong immune response through the production of antibodies following the injection of booster shots.

Scientists concluded that their study represents a unique approach in the use of transgenic plants as vaccines. The use of beta-amyloid injected tomatoes was not associated with any reduction in the number of existing beta-amyloid plaques in the brain of lab mice.

PKH/HGH