ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Samuel Cohen - Research scientist
Samuel Cohen researches Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

Why you should listen
Samuel Cohen is a Research Fellow in Biophysical Chemistry at St. John's College and the Centre for Misfolding Diseases in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, from where he holds PhD, MSci, MA and BA degrees. Cohen has worked as a consultant in the London office of Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he specialized in the healthcare, technology and media sectors. His scientific research focuses on neurodegenerative disorders. He is co-author of more than 20 scientific papers, book chapters and patents, and was recently a lead author on a widely-reported study in which researchers made a major breakthrough towards finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease.
More profile about the speaker
Samuel Cohen | Speaker | TED.com
TED@BCG London

Samuel Cohen: Alzheimer's is not normal aging — and we can cure it

Samuel Cohen: O alzhéimer non é o envellecemento normal, e podémolo curar

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2,376,932 views

Hai máis de 40 millóns de enfermos de alzhéimer no mundo, e estímase que nos vindeiros anos esa cifra vai aumentar de forma drástica. Porén, apenas se levan producido verdadeiros avances no tratamento desta enfermidade desde que se identificou hai xa máis dun século. O científico Samuel Cohen presenta un importante paso adiante dado polo seu laboratorio na investigación sobre o alzhéimer e envía unha mensaxe de esperanza: "O alzhéimer é unha enfermidade, e podémola curar".
- Research scientist
Samuel Cohen researches Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
In the year 1901,
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No ano 1901
00:14
a woman called Auguste was taken
to a medical asylum in Frankfurt.
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unha muller chamada Auguste
foi levada a un psiquiátrico de Frankfurt.
00:18
Auguste was delusional
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Auguste deliraba
00:20
and couldn't remember
even the most basic details of her life.
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e non lembraba nin os detalles
máis básicos da súa vida.
00:24
Her doctor was called Alois.
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O seu médico chamábase Alois.
00:27
Alois didn't know how to help Auguste,
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Alois non sabía cómo axudarlle a Auguste,
00:30
but he watched over her until,
sadly, she passed away in 1906.
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pero mirou por ela ata que,
por desgraza, ela faleceu en 1906.
00:34
After she died, Alois performed an autopsy
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Logo de que morrera,
Alois realizoulle unha autopsia
00:37
and found strange plaques
and tangles in Auguste's brain --
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e atopou placas e enguedellos estraños
no cerebro de Auguste,
00:40
the likes of which he'd never seen before.
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como nunca tal vira.
00:42
Now here's the even more striking thing.
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Pero hai algo aínda máis rechamante.
00:46
If Auguste had instead been alive today,
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Se Auguste estivese viva hoxe,
00:49
we could offer her no more help
than Alois was able to 114 years ago.
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non lle daríamos prestado máis axuda
da que Alois puido darlle hai 114 anos.
00:56
Alois was Dr. Alois Alzheimer.
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Alois era o Dr. Alois Alzheimer.
01:00
And Auguste Deter
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E Auguste Deter
01:02
was the first patient to be diagnosed with
what we now call Alzheimer's disease.
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foi a primeira doente diagnosticada co que
agora chamamos enfermidade de Alzheimer.
01:07
Since 1901, medicine has advanced greatly.
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Desde 1901 a medicina leva avanzado moito.
01:11
We've discovered antibiotics and vaccines
to protect us from infections,
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Descubrimos antibióticos e vacinas
para protexérmonos das infeccións,
01:15
many treatments for cancer,
antiretrovirals for HIV,
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moitos tratamentos para o cancro,
antirretrovirais para o VIH,
01:19
statins for heart disease and much more.
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estatinas para as doenzas cardíacas,
e moito máis.
01:22
But we've made essentially no progress
at all in treating Alzheimer's disease.
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Pero practicamente non progresamos nada
tratando a enfermidade de Alzheimer.
01:30
I'm part of a team of scientists
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Pertenzo a un equipo científico
01:32
who has been working to find
a cure for Alzheimer's for over a decade.
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que vén traballando na busca dunha cura
ao Alzheimer desde hai máis dunha década.
01:35
So I think about this all the time.
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Así que penso nisto todo o tempo.
01:38
Alzheimer's now affects
40 million people worldwide.
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O alzhéimer afecta actualmente
a 40 millóns de persoas no mundo.
01:42
But by 2050, it will affect
150 million people --
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Pero en 2050 afectará a 150 millóns...
01:48
which, by the way,
will include many of you.
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incluídos, por certo, moitos de vostedes.
01:53
If you're hoping
to live to be 85 or older,
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Se esperan vivir ata os 85 ou máis,
01:57
your chance of getting Alzheimer's
will be almost one in two.
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a súa probabilidade de ter alzhéimer
será case de unha entre dúas.
02:03
In other words, odds are
you'll spend your golden years
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Noutras palabras, o máis probable
é que pasen os seus anos dourados
02:06
either suffering from Alzheimer's
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ou padecendo alzhéimer
02:09
or helping to look after a friend
or loved one with Alzheimer's.
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ou axudando a coidar dun amigo
ou dalgún ser querido que o padece.
02:14
Already in the United States alone,
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Só nos Estados Unidos de América,
02:16
Alzheimer's care costs
200 billion dollars every year.
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a atención do alzhéimer custa xa
200 mil millóns de dólares cada ano.
02:21
One out of every five
Medicare dollars get spent on Alzheimer's.
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Un de cada cinco dólares de Medicare
gástase no alzhéimer.
É hoxe a doenza máis cara,
02:26
It is today the most expensive disease,
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02:29
and costs are projected
to increase fivefold by 2050,
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e prevese que os custos
se multiplicarán por cinco en 2050,
02:33
as the baby boomer generation ages.
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ao envellecer a xeración do baby boom.
02:36
It may surprise you that, put simply,
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Talvez lles sorprenda que, falando claro,
02:39
Alzheimer's is one of the biggest medical
and social challenges of our generation.
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o alzhéimer sexa un dos meirandes desafíos
médicos e sociais da nosa xeración.
02:44
But we've done relatively
little to address it.
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Mais fixemos relativamente
pouco para afrontalo.
02:47
Today, of the top 10
causes of death worldwide,
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Hoxe, das dez primeiras
causas de morte no mundo,
02:51
Alzheimer's is the only one
we cannot prevent, cure or even slow down.
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o alzhéimer é a única que non somos
quen de previr, curar ou mesmo frear.
02:59
We understand less about the science
of Alzheimer's than other diseases
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Entendemos menos do alzhéimer
que doutras doenzas
03:03
because we've invested less time
and money into researching it.
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porque investimos menos
tempo e diñeiro en investigalo.
03:07
The US government
spends 10 times more every year
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O goberno estadounidense
gasta cada ano dez veces máis
03:11
on cancer research than on Alzheimer's
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na investigación do cancro
que na do alzhéimer
03:14
despite the fact
that Alzheimer's costs us more
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malia custarnos máis o alzhéimer
03:18
and causes a similar number
of deaths each year as cancer.
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e causar cada ano un número
de mortes semellante ao cancro.
03:23
The lack of resources
stems from a more fundamental cause:
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A falta de recursos xorde
dunha causa máis fundamental:
03:27
a lack of awareness.
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a falta de conciencia.
03:30
Because here's what few people know
but everyone should:
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Porque velaquí o que poucos saben,
pero todos deberían saber:
03:35
Alzheimer's is a disease,
and we can cure it.
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o alzhéimer é unha doenza,
e podemos curala.
03:40
For most of the past 114 years,
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A maior parte dos últimos 114 anos
03:42
everyone, including scientists, mistakenly
confused Alzheimer's with aging.
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todos, incluídos os científicos,
confundiron o alzhéimer co envellecemento.
Críamos que quedar senil
03:48
We thought that becoming senile
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03:49
was a normal and inevitable
part of getting old.
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era unha parte normal
e inevitable de ir vello.
03:53
But we only have to look at a picture
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Pero abonda con ver unha imaxe
03:55
of a healthy aged brain compared
to the brain of an Alzheimer's patient
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dun cerebro vello san comparado
co cerebro dun doente de alzhéimer
03:58
to see the real physical damage
caused by this disease.
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para decatarse do dano físico
certo causado por esta doenza.
04:02
As well as triggering severe loss
of memory and mental abilities,
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Amais de provocar unha grave perda
da memoria e das capacidades mentais,
04:06
the damage to the brain
caused by Alzheimer's
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o dano cerebral causado polo alzhéimer
04:09
significantly reduces life expectancy
and is always fatal.
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reduce sensiblemente a esperanza de vida
e sempre é fatal.
04:14
Remember Dr. Alzheimer
found strange plaques and tangles
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Recorden que o Dr. Alzheimer atopou
placas e enguedellos estraños
04:17
in Auguste's brain a century ago.
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no cerebro de Auguste hai un século.
04:20
For almost a century,
we didn't know much about these.
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Durante case un século,
non soubemos moito acerca deles.
04:24
Today we know they're made
from protein molecules.
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Hoxe sabemos que están feitos
de moléculas proteicas.
04:27
You can imagine a protein molecule
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Imaxínense unha molécula proteica
04:29
as a piece of paper that normally folds
into an elaborate piece of origami.
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como un papel que normalmente se prega
nunha elaborada figura de papiroflexia.
04:34
There are spots
on the paper that are sticky.
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No papel hai partes apegadizas
04:36
And when it folds correctly,
these sticky bits end up on the inside.
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e cando se prega axeitadamente,
estas partes apegadizas acaban dentro.
04:41
But sometimes things go wrong,
and some sticky bits are on the outside.
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Pero ás veces as cousas saen mal,
e algunhas partes apegadizas quedan fóra.
04:46
This causes the protein molecules
to stick to each other,
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Isto causa que as moléculas proteicas
se peguen unhas ás outras,
04:49
forming clumps that eventually become
large plaques and tangles.
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formando masas que co tempo
forman placas e enguedellos grandes.
04:53
That's what we see
in the brains of Alzheimer's patients.
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Iso é o que vemos nos cerebros
dos doentes con alzhéimer.
04:57
We've spent the past 10 years
at the University of Cambridge
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Pasamos os últimos dez anos
na Universidade de Cambridge
05:00
trying to understand
how this malfunction works.
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tratando de entender
como funciona esta anomalía.
05:03
There are many steps, and identifying
which step to try to block is complex --
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Hai moitos pasos, e identificar o paso
que cómpre bloquear é complexo.
05:08
like defusing a bomb.
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Como desactivar unha bomba.
05:10
Cutting one wire might do nothing.
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Cortar un cable podería non facer nada.
05:12
Cutting others might
make the bomb explore.
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Cortar outros pode facer explotar a bomba.
05:16
We have to find the right step to block,
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Temos que dar co paso
que cómpre bloquear,
05:18
and then create a drug that does it.
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e logo crear un fármaco que o faga.
05:21
Until recently, we for the most part
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Ata hai pouco, case todo o que fixemos
05:23
have been cutting wires
and hoping for the best.
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foi cortar cables e confiar na sorte.
05:25
But now we've got together
a diverse group of people --
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Pero agora xuntamos
un grupo diverso de persoas:
05:28
medics, biologists, geneticists, chemists,
physicists, engineers and mathematicians.
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médicos, biólogos, xenetistas, químicos,
físicos, enxeñeiros e matemáticos.
05:34
And together, we've managed
to identify a critical step in the process
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E xuntos, conseguimos identificar
un paso esencial no proceso
05:38
and are now testing a new class of drugs
which would specifically block this step
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e estamos agora probando unha nova clase
de fármacos para bloquear xusto este paso
05:42
and stop the disease.
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e deter a enfermidade.
05:44
Now let me show you
some of our latest results.
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Permítanme amosarlles algúns
dos nosos últimos resultados.
05:46
No one outside of our lab
has seen these yet.
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Ninguén fóra do noso
laboratorio os viu aínda.
05:49
Let's look at some videos of what happened
when we tested these new drugs in worms.
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Vexamos uns vídeos do que pasou
cando probamos estes fármacos en vermes.
05:54
So these are healthy worms,
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Estes son vermes sans,
05:56
and you can see
they're moving around normally.
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e poden velos moverse normalmente.
05:59
These worms, on the other hand,
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Estes vermes, porén,
06:02
have protein molecules
sticking together inside them --
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teñen neles moléculas proteicas pegadas,
06:05
like humans with Alzheimer's.
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como os humanos con alzhéimer,
06:07
And you can see they're clearly sick.
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e poden ver que están claramente doentes.
06:09
But if we give our new drugs
to these worms at an early stage,
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Pero se lles damos a estes vermes
o noso novo fármaco nunha fase temperá,
06:14
then we see that they're healthy,
and they live a normal lifespan.
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vemos que están sans,
e a súa vida dura o normal.
Este é só un primeiro resultado positivo,
06:19
This is just an initial positive result,
but research like this
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pero investigacións coma esta amosan
06:22
shows us that Alzheimer's is a disease
that we can understand and we can cure.
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que o alzhéimer é unha enfermidade
que podemos entender e podemos curar.
06:27
After 114 years of waiting,
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Logo de 114 anos de espera,
06:30
there's finally real hope
for what can be achieved
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hai por fin unha esperanza real
do que pode acadarse
06:32
in the next 10 or 20 years.
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nos vindeiros 10 ou 20 anos.
Pero para alimentar esa esperanza,
06:36
But to grow that hope,
to finally beat Alzheimer's, we need help.
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para acabar vencendo ao alzhéimer,
necesitamos axuda.
06:40
This isn't about scientists like me --
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Non é cousa dos científicos coma min;
06:42
it's about you.
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é cousa de vostedes.
06:44
We need you to raise awareness
that Alzheimer's is a disease
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Necesitámolos para espertar a conciencia
de que o alzhéimer é unha doenza
06:48
and that if we try, we can beat it.
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e de que se o intentamos podemos vencela.
06:50
In the case of other diseases,
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No caso doutras doenzas,
os pacientes e as súas familias
lideraron a demanda de máis investigación
06:52
patients and their families
have led the charge for more research
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06:55
and put pressure on governments,
the pharmaceutical industry,
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e fixeron presión sobre os gobernos,
a industria farmacéutica,
06:58
scientists and regulators.
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os científicos e os lexisladores.
07:01
That was essential for advancing treatment
for HIV in the late 1980s.
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Iso foi esencial para progresar
no tratamento do VIH a fins dos 80.
07:05
Today, we see that same drive
to beat cancer.
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Hoxe vemos o mesmo impulso
para combater co cancro.
07:10
But Alzheimer's patients are often
unable to speak up for themselves.
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Pero moitos doentes de alzhéimer
non poden defenderse por si mesmos.
07:14
And their families, the hidden victims,
caring for their loved ones night and day,
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E as súas familias, as vítimas ocultas,
a coidar aos seres queridos día e noite,
07:19
are often too worn out
to go out and advocate for change.
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están a miúdo demasiado cansas
para saír defender o cambio.
07:23
So, it really is down to you.
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Así que de feito depende de vostedes.
O alzhéimer non é, polo xeral,
unha enfermidade xenética.
07:27
Alzheimer's isn't,
for the most part, a genetic disease.
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07:31
Everyone with a brain is at risk.
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Quenquera que teña cerebro está en risco.
07:34
Today, there are 40 million
patients like Auguste,
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Hoxe hai 40 millóns
de doentes como Auguste,
07:38
who can't create the change
they need for themselves.
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que non poden por si mesmos
crear o cambio que necesitan.
07:41
Help speak up for them,
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Axuden a defendelos,
07:44
and help demand a cure.
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e axuden a reclamar unha cura.
07:47
Thank you.
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Grazas.
07:48
(Applause)
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(Aplausos)
Translated by Joaquín R.-Toubes
Reviewed by Servizo de Normalización Lingüística

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Samuel Cohen - Research scientist
Samuel Cohen researches Alzheimer's disease and other neurodegenerative disorders.

Why you should listen
Samuel Cohen is a Research Fellow in Biophysical Chemistry at St. John's College and the Centre for Misfolding Diseases in the Department of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, from where he holds PhD, MSci, MA and BA degrees. Cohen has worked as a consultant in the London office of Boston Consulting Group (BCG), where he specialized in the healthcare, technology and media sectors. His scientific research focuses on neurodegenerative disorders. He is co-author of more than 20 scientific papers, book chapters and patents, and was recently a lead author on a widely-reported study in which researchers made a major breakthrough towards finding a cure for Alzheimer's disease.
More profile about the speaker
Samuel Cohen | Speaker | TED.com
THE ORIGINAL VIDEO ON TED.COM