A group of local scientists say they have developed for the first time in the world a new substance that can help treat Alzheimer's disease.
 
The group led by Kim Young-soo and Kim Dong-jin at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology said it developed a substance, dubbed EPPS, that breaks down beta-amyloid and eliminates its toxicity.
 
Beta-amyloid is a protein fragment that causes Alzheimer's disease.
 
The team made a drug with EPPS and injected it into mice with symptoms of dementia. The team said the mice were cured of their symptoms after EPPS completely eliminated lumps of beta-amyloid in the brain.
 
The scientists said EPPS can be absorbed in the brain by drinking it after mixing it in water because it can pass through the blood-brain barrier thanks to its small size.
 
Alzheimer's patients account for between 70 and 90 percent of those suffering from dementia in the world. A treatment that would eliminate the cause of the disease has yet to be discovered.