An enzyme that helps break down cholesterol may also be a therapeutic target to stave off neurologic diseases, including Alzheimer’s and a rare genetic disorder, according to a new study published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry. Researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, the National Institute of Standards and Technology, and Karolinska Institute in Sweden discovered that a specific enzyme in the brain could reduce the formation of debilitating brain lesions in the two diseases. A clinical trial to test the enzyme’s potential as a therapeutic target is planned for later this year.