Find medicines to treat Down syndrome

Stanford University researchers (USA) said they found a drug that could help people resist mental retardation due to Down's disease.

This medicine is called pentylenetetrazole, or PTZ, used to study epilepsy. According to the researchers, PTZ has been shown to improve learning and memory in mice with Down syndrome. This effect even lasts for months after treatment is stopped. Now researchers are considering conducting a clinical trial in humans.

This finding, published in Nature Neuroscience on February 25, may also help scientists discover the cause of mental retardation in Down patients.

Down syndrome is the most common disease among chromosomal disorders, with about 1 in 800 babies born with the disease. The disease can happen to anyone, but the risk is higher in babies born to mothers over 35 years old. Symptoms of the disease include mental retardation, mild malformations. Many patients also have other health problems, especially heart problems.

T.VY