Anavex Life Sciences Corp (AVXL)

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Once again, disrupted autophagy causes Alzheimer’s.

These results suggest, but do not conclusively demonstrate, that lower autophagic flux may be strongly associated with loss of function in AD brains.

As I see it, that’s the central finding of the study. Autophagy functions inadequately, disease results.

It is understood that all cells, at all ages, produce waste peptides (amino acid polymers) or proteins (made of peptides). These chemical wastes need to be destroyed or removed from the cell. If they are not, the peptides grab onto or connect to functioning proteins, keeping them from working. When proteins (most often, enzymes) can’t function, the cell itself fails to work properly. Pathology (disease) of various sorts and degrees overtakes the cell and the tissues or organs it’s in.

But normally-functioning cells have feedback mechanisms that first detect the accumulation of the toxic wastes, then chemically destroy or remove them from the cell. Your urine smells from those cleared wastes.

The detection and clearance of these wastes is one function of autophagy, an essential process in functioning cells. The word derives from these word parts. “Auto-” means “self.” “-phagy” means “to eat.” In the strictest nomenclatural sense “autophagy” means “self-eating.”

But the “eating” means either the destruction of the wastes, or their excretion from the cell. Cellular waste clearing. Essential.

In your house you have a similar “autophagy.” Your thermostat and your furnace. When working properly the furnace puts out just enough heat to keep the house comfortable. But the thermostat on the wall continuously measures the temperature. When it gets too high, it turns off the furnace. When room temps get too low, it turns on the furnace; keeping a constant temperature.

Autophagy operates the same way. In the cell the level and nature of wastes is constantly detected, then by autophagic processes destroyed or removed. That’s the “homeostasis” of autophagy. “Homeo-” means “same” or “static.” “-stasis” means “same” or “same-state.” Homeostasis keeps things in the cell at the same, properly-functioning state. In most diseases homeostasis is disrupted; things aren’t maintained in favorable operating state. Pathogenicity.

This is where blarcamesine comes in. There is presently strong evidence that this Anavex drug restores or promotes cellular autophagy, producing a proper, healthful homeostatic condition. It can do this by its propitious activation of the sigma-1 receptor protein, which is involved in a number of homeostatic processes — including the removal of neuron wastes that otherwise cause Alzheimer’s (and other CNS diseases).

That’s how this one molecule, without any imputed magic, can so favorably fix a diversity of diseases and conditions; all if which are caused by or complicated by inadequate autophagy. The sigma-1 receptor protein works at the start of the many downstream reaction pathways that control autophagy. Keep it working (as blarcamesine does) and autophagy functions properly; wastes are detected and cleared; the cell works normally.