21/03/2017 Points West

Welcome to BBC Points West with Alex Lovell and David Garmston.

The extraordinary research into Alzheimer's.

We're in the lab with the very hungry caterpillars helping

scientists find the link between sugar and dementia.

We feed them sugar rich diets, and their proteins in their blood become

damaged. We'll have the latest

from the professor in charge. A council writes to a resident

to take away her tax reduction The football star who may

lose his licence yet again. And happy days for the village

which has just received Finding the cause of dementia is one

of the most pressing challenges in medical science,

and in Bath they could be on to something thanks

to the humble caterpillar. They're feeding the creatures

with the sort of diet they and most of us enjoy,

sugar, and seeing Our health correspondent

Matthew Hill reports. This is the newest weapon

in the fight against Alzheimer's. For some time, scientists have known

that how much sugar we eat So they've enlisted the help

of one of the greediest creatures on the planet -

this very hungry caterpillar. This is kind of almost

the end of the cycle... The clue's in its Latin name -

manduca sexta which We are studying these

because we are interested in the damage that sugars cause

to proteins in the diet. In the colony, we hold

all of the stages of the life cycle. So it goes through all the stages

but it is the caterpillar stage It's been known for some time that

people with Type 2 diabetes are far It's thought that's because glucose

forms a harmful by-product in their blood, which makes it

harder to kill the abnormal proteins known as plaques and tangels,

which form in the brain. The same team of scientists in Bath

have already developed a technique using a flourescent light

to discover the tell-tale It's called glycation where sugar

attaches to proteins Scientists think a substance found

in berries and chocolate, called flavinoids, may

reduce this glycation. So they are adding these flavenoids

to the caterpillar diet to see It's an interesting model system

that we're using to test the effects of high sugar on biological

function, which we hope will give us a way of testing a mechanism that

can be used to screen drugs and interventions to reduce this

glycation that we are seeing Yes, these caterpillars like eating

sugar, so we can mimic that high-sugar environment

that we see in humans. This is the only place in Europe

to culture these caterpillars. They evenually transform

into a moth, and these pests can One essential ingredient

for horn worms is tobacco. They need the smell of it in order

to breed and lay eggs. That is why the university

have a special licence This research project

could take years. But if this greedy caterpillar can

shed light on how diet could reduce the chances of Alzheimer's,

then we may well have Professor Jean Van Den Elsen is from

the university research team. Now, you've not brought any

of the hungry caterpillars with you. They need to be contained because

they are a pest. Not that we grow any tobacco in this country but they

eat potatoes, tomatoes and chilli Peppers.

And your fingers? They were having a bite. For people

at home, they are thinking this. I can see a headline reading:

"Berries and chocolate It is the gist of the story but a

bit more complicated. We feed them high levels of glucose,

we make them diabetic, then we can see similar to what happens in

diabetes, we see damage to the proteins in their blood. We are

trying to find these molecules and stop that from happening. There is

evidence that. Potentially any molecules in coffee, tea, berries

and chocolate, red wine, could stop this from happening.

The flavonoids we were hearing about.

In theory, eating too much sugar could give you diabetes, we know it

can, type two. Eating chocolate or drinking red wine might actually

prevent it or reverse it? We have to take the sugar out of the

chocolate. There is always a catch. There is a

clear link between sugar and diabetes, diabetes and Alzheimer's.

How sure are you? Population studies have shown people suffering from

uncontrolled diabetes type two actually can have a high risk to

develop Alzheimer's disease. This can affect everybody whether

they are worried about their own health or somebody in there found me

-- family. People will look at headlines and think we on our way?

How exciting do you feel this research could be?

It is a great model system to test these compounds and we really

hopeful find something, to use a combination of these southern noise

from coffee, tea, chocolate or red wine, to make the right clock tile

to stop sugar damage. Sugar seems to be number one enemy,

is it a fad or is there real evidence?

There is real evidence. Evidence in the lab has shown people suffering

from Alzheimer's disease have a changed sugar damaged pattern in

their brains, it is clearly linked to high sugar levels in their

bloods. So, that is really good evidence.

And the caterpillars you take care of them?

We look after them. They don't live long enough to

develop Alzheimer's disease. Thank you for coming in. Incredible.

Thank you. Rail services in the west are likely

to remain disrupted for the next two days after a freight train

derailed in Somerset. Replacement buses are covering

the line between Westbury All local services and journeys

from the west to London that use that particular stretch

of track are affected. Network Rail is helping

with the investigation to find out A new line of inquiry

in the Sally Ann John murder case in Wiltshire has come from last

night's Crimewatch appeal. On the programme, detectives

revealed that a postcard existed, supposedly sent by her

after she disappeared The handwriting didn't match

Sally Ann's and police believed it They had eight calls, one of

which was potentially significant. It will send three weeks before she

went missing. We strongly believe it was sent to mislead the league -- to

mislead the police. We believe the person who wrote that card was

coerced or misled into writing that or the person responsible for her

murder. We will never give up for the sake

of the family. We keep reviewing our lines of

inquiring, identifying new lines. We are hopeful we will get the

breakthrough we require. There's a reward of ?25,000

for information that leads to a conviction,

or the discovery Bristol City's star striker

Tammy Abraham could lose his driving On the pitch, the 19-year-old's

delighted fans with his But off it, he faces a court summons

following an accident close to the club's training ground,

as Andrew Plant reports. On loan to Bristol City

from Chelsea, Tammy Abraham has already had a big impact

on the club, scoring The last of those in a 4-0 home win

against Huddersfield on Friday. Quite a day for the 19-year-old,

earlier that day pictured with his instructor,

after success too He later sent him a signed

shirt to say thank you. But it wasn't the first

time he had passed. His previous licence had been

revoked, under rules that prevent new drivers from racking up more

than six points in Now it seems his second full licence

could also be under threat. At the end of January,

Tammy Abraham was leaving training at the club's facilities here,

just outside Bristol, when his car He has since been issued

with a summons to attend court and faces allegations of driving

without a licence or endurance. It means that Tammy Abraham will

need to go to court voluntarily, But those offences can

carry penalty points. So if he is ever found guilty

of them, he could lose that Andrew Plant, BBC

Points West, Bristol. You're watching Points West

with David and Alex. The first day of spring but it feels

like it. Still to come on this

evening's programme. A gritty new movie

set in Gloucester. The makers will be with us

shortly to explain why And find out what happened

when we took a monk to meet A grieving son has branded

South Gloucestershire Council "insensitive" after receiving

a letter about his mother's The letter was addressed to his mum

informing her that she would no longer get a reduction

as she'd "passed away." He got in touch with us,

as he wants to prevent other families from being treated

in the same way. Ada Davies, a much-loved

mother and wife. Described at her funeral as someone

who didn't mince her words. She died aged 95 on

the 27th of February. It's been a difficult time

for those closest to her. A time, her son says,

made worse on receiving this It was addressed to his mum

despite the fact that it explained that her council tax reduction

was being cancelled It even invited her to "make

a new claim" for a reduction, or to "contact" the office

for more information. Another letter has since asked her

to pay her council tax We are thinking about our mother

all the time then you get letters addressed to her stating she is dead

but as if she is alive They can't claim

because she has passed. Some other members of the family

are quite disgusted with it. If the reason for the reduction is

death, don't print, or don't send. To add something like

that to their system. If it was a family much more

distressed by the death, it could have a major

impact on them. Mrs Davies's council tax

account has now been closed Christopher's family now hope to put

the experience behind them, and to focus on grieving

for their mother. A Cheltenham man has been sentenced

to almost 25 years in prison after pleading guilty

to murdering a teenager. 17-year-old Camran Green

was stabbed last October. Steven Sharpe admitted

the killing and also Our home affairs correspondent

Charlotte Callen reports. 17 years old and under the care

of social services, Camran Green Despite having a care team,

he was able to travel by train from Birmingham

to Cheltenham at weekends. Customers ordered drugs

over the phone from him, That's how he met this man,

Steven Sharpe, who let him stay On the 2nd of October last year,

Sharpe tried to rob Camran He stabbed him with this 14-inch

knife, described as a Rambo Police say more young vulnerable

people are getting caught up in drug I think it is an indication of

the world we live in where lots of communications are by mobile phones

and people want things instantly. That's what we're seeing

here in the drugs His mum wants to warn young people

not to carry knives. She's also upset her son wasn't

better looked after. You know, they should have found out

where he was going, who he was with, you know, all that

a mother would do. These care workers should

see him as their child. So I am quite disappointed

and annoyed they didn't The judge here today said the murky

world of drugs had taken yet another Steven Sharpe was given a life

sentence, he will serve at Charlotte Callen, BBC

Points West, in Bristol. A new film set in Gloucester

will receive its premiere It's the work of two brothers-in-law

who were so moved by the number of high-profile stabbings,

that they felt the need to show on screen how

knife crime ruins lives. And we're pleased to say

they've joined us in Let us look at the trailer so we

know what we are talking about. MUSIC it gives us an idea but we

don't see the story. What can we expect? It is a social

responsive film that tackles knife crime, domestic violence, it gives

an insight into peer pressure that make decisions and a better

understanding. We tag line it as a socially

conscious from about how knife crime destroys lives.

Have you been able to work out from making the film by young people feel

the need to carry a knife? We have done a lot of community

conversations with charities that work with young people. There are so

many reasons, for protection, through fear. We decided to create

this form to tackle those issues. You are showing the consequences. It

is big and tough to carry a knife. You have seen what it is like, the

repercussions that they couldn't expect.

That is right. It is analysing things close to home creating a form

that will expand on the knowledge. Where will this film go now? We are

hoping to launch it at Gloucester Guildhall on Friday in May. And get

national distribution so more people can see the film.

Knife crime is a national issue. It is so relevant, talked about day. We

were talking about it in Gloucester. Have you had any input from the

families of the people that have been affected by this. I'm thinking

about Hollie Gazzard and her family. We had a word with Nick, he revealed

his heart. And we spoke to a local charity dealing with young people on

a regular basis, they gave us insight.

You decided to make a film but, as you know, that is an extremely

difficult thing to do, to make a watchable film with a message is

very hard. What expense have you had before this?

Is it a first attempt? We worked on stuff tween us, short films. We

decided to make something that was socially responsive, and get into

the in-depth reasons. We had an insight of Benjamin

Woodward who came on board, and Thomas Sellick Newton, a 23-year-old

university lecturer. Have you enjoyed the process?

As well as educational, it is entertaining as well.

Otherwise it won't engage in the right way.

Good luck with it. We look forward to seeing it.

Nice to meet you. Now we all dream of what we might do

if we were suddenly left But imagine what it would be

like if your whole village Well, that's what's happened

to the people living in the west They're now having to decide

between them how to spend what's being described

as a "jaw-dropping legacy." Our Somerset correspondent

Clinton Rogers reports. As recreation grounds go,

it is already pretty impressive. Now imagine you have nearly

three-quarters of a million Something amazing

for the kids, maybe. Probably build a swimming

pool or something. Because 1,200 letters have been

delivered to people living in the area asking for ideas of how

to spend the money left to them You know one of the more intriguing

things about this story is that very We've not met anyone

who knew her well. All we know is that she was in her

late 90s when she died in December, and apparently she had

no surviving children. And so the bulk of her estate

was left to the recreation And can you just imagine

the surprise of those in charge when they were told there

was a legacy for them. When he came to see me and told me

what the amount would be, ?700,000, possibly a little more,

it was just jaw-dropping. It'll be several months yet before

a final decision is made. Porlock is about to get one

of the best recreation Clinton Rogers, BBC

Points West, Porlock. It is quite remarkable. A lovely

place. A brand new copy of a Georgian

recipe book has just been published which sheds new light

on what was being cooked It chronicled the day-to-day life

at an historic home and was later moved to an abbey in Somerset

where monks rediscovered it. We sent Liz Beacon for a taster

to see if the recipes In the archives of Downside Abbey

there are all sorts of treasures. From 11th century church

documents to relics collected But the discovery of a Georgian

cookbook has been rather special. There's some recipes

for rice pudding. Some chicken, even more

adventurous recipes, things with pigs' feet and calves'

heads that perhaps we wouldn't have nowadays but are really

interesting recipes to have. What is surprising is some

of the ingredients mentioned As Father Christopher told me,

there are examples of the exotic Bristol was the gateway into England

and indeed out of England And so things like sugar coming

from the West Indies, and spices coming from the Far East,

and this house seems to have taken full advantage of that

because there are ingredients The Georgian chicken

curry has caught my eye, so I am taking a monk to meet

a Michelin-starred chef. What surprised me about this

recipe in the 18th century It made reference to three

teaspoons of curry powder. What struck me about that was,

I was thinking, what is Obviously we have curry powder

now that we use but we have It was interesting back then

they had these curry Curry powder, stock, onions,

chicken and thicken with rice flour. Chef Josh Eggleton is following

the recipe word for word. More basic than he's used

to but with surprising results. It is our recipe but somebody else

is cooking so I have to be So, an eight out of ten

from Father Christopher. But for simplicity, flavour

and being ahead of its time, Looks delicious. Quite slimming I

expect. I might have some of that. Now, just before we go

to the weather, today All across the country,

people are wearing brightly-coloured socks to raise awareness

of the condition. Well, you may remember this little

boy here on the left. His name's Seb White and a few weeks

ago he and his mum were guests Well, today, Seb, and all his

friends, wore their coloured socks to school in Bath,

and they certainly look Today I forgot. Tomorrow, I will

wear bright socks. And me.

It is actually a comparatively chilly field to things as we are

under what is the first shower to come across here with great timing.

For many of you in the sunny spells today it has been decent. But

different where you are under the showers, some have been heavy. Over

the next 24 hours, the main story will take shape tonight in the form

of a band of heavy rain. First light tomorrow, that ball straddles the

West Country, particularly to the east, then rotating itself away so

the afternoon will brighten up, punctuated by showers, with light

winds and any sunny spells will make it a sunny affair.

You see that front is developing to the South West peninsular tonight

and straddling tomorrow morning. It arcs its way over the Midlands

followed by a regime of sunny spells and showers which will fade away as

we head through tomorrow evening. At the moment, there is still a

number of showers across the West Country, some quite potent, some

hailstorms embedded. They will die away but watch how that band of rain

develops through the second half of the night, some wintry spells over

Exmoor with wet snow and other spots as well. Temperatures tonight fairly

chilly, 1-4 C, some spots getting close to freezing, like Exmoor.

Tomorrow, some uncertainty, that band will linger during the morning.

From Bristol eastwards, drifting out From Bristol

a brighter story in the afternoon. towards the north to be replaced by

a brighter story in the afternoon. Some showers in the afternoon could

be heavy, the winds and slow-moving. Temperatures

of year. If you are in the sunshine, of year. If you are in the sunshine,

it should be a decent story. That will be dictated by the position of

the showers. Thursday, a notably chilly day with

a north-easterly wind, seminar on Friday but it will improve at the

weekend. Thank you. A fashion tip, if you are

wearing thick socks, make sure you have some nice sandals with them.

Lovely! You know how to dress! Do it tomorrow! Recipes on our

Facebook page to recreate that curry. Goodbye.