A man-made compound has been developed that is capable of jamming a nerve cell process which is known to lead to symptoms of the incapacitating disease.

In people suffering from the disease, this process leads to the death of brain cells, causing memory loss and learning disability.

The process occurs when the interaction of an 'amyloid' protein and an enzyme called ABAD (Amyloid Beta Alcohol Dehydrogenase) releases toxic substances which kill brain cells.

After studying how amyloid attaches itself to ABAD, researchers at the University of St Andrews, were then able to develop a chemical decoy called a peptide which attracted the amyloid to attach to it instead of the ABAD.

It also caused some amyloid to decouple from ABAD where it was already fixed and connect with the peptide in its place. Some symptoms of learning problems and memory loss improved in mice.

"Alzheimer's sufferers produce too much amyloid and ABAD in their brains. Based on our knowledge of ABAD, we produced an inhibitor that can prevent amyloid attaching to it in a living model. We have shown that it is possible to reverse some of the signs associated with Alzheimer's disease,” Telegraph quoted Dr Gunn-Moore, a senior lecturer at the University's School of Biology, as saying.