Alzheimer's Disease News and Research

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Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an irreversible, progressive brain disease that slowly destroys memory and thinking skills and, eventually, the ability to carry out the simplest tasks of daily living. In most people with AD, symptoms first appear after age 60. AD is the most common cause of dementia among older people, but it is not a normal part of aging. Dementia refers to a decline in cognitive function that interferes with daily life and activities. AD starts in a region of the brain that affects recent memory, then gradually spreads to other parts of the brain. Although treatment can slow the progression of AD and help manage its symptoms in some people, currently there is no cure for this devastating disease.

Researchers uncover a new cellular mechanism for disposing of misfolded proteins

About 30 years ago, Dr. Richard Sifers set out on a journey to discover why people with a rare condition known as alpha1-antitrypsin (AAT) deficiency present with high variation in the severity of liver disease.

21 Oct 2020

Enzyme SSH1 impairs disposal of damaged tau and mitochondria leaking toxins

In a healthy brain, the multistep waste clearance process known as autophagy routinely removes and degrades damaged cell components - including malformed proteins like tau and toxic mitochondria.

13 Oct 2020

Researchers discover how synapses find energy to support intense neural conversations

Our thoughts, feelings, and movements are controlled by billions of neurons talking to each other at trillions of specialized communication points called synapses.

6 Oct 2020

Vacuolar Tauopathy: New, rare genetic form of dementia discovered

A new, rare genetic form of dementia has been discovered by a team of Penn Medicine researchers. This discovery also sheds light on a new pathway that leads to protein build up in the brain -- which causes this newly discovered disease, as well as related neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's Disease -- that could be targeted for new therapies. The study was published today in Science.

5 Oct 2020

Epigenetic alterations drive late-onset Alzheimer's disease

New findings suggest that late-onset Alzheimer's Disease is driven by epigenetic changes -- how and when certain genes are turned on and off -- in the brain. Results were published today in Nature Genetics.

29 Sep 2020

Study sheds light on how membrane proteins could be influenced by lipids

The cell membrane, the wall-like boundary between the cell interior and its outside environment, is primarily made up of two kinds of biomolecules: lipids and proteins.

25 Sep 2020

Biomarker for diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases identified in the eye

A new study led by Boston Medical Center researchers indicates a well-known biomarker that serves as a marker for earlier diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases is now detectable in the eye.

24 Sep 2020

Alzheimer's disease may be driven by overactivation of fructose made in the brain

New research released from the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus proposes that Alzheimer's disease may be driven by the overactivation of fructose made in the brain.

24 Sep 2020

Star-shaped brain cells are essential for blood-brain barrier health, shows study

Hard skulls help protect our brains from physical injuries.In addition to a tough outer shell, brains have internal defenses, including a powerful shield called the blood-brain barrier that defends brain cells from substances in the bloodstream that are toxic and dangerous to nerve cells. If the blood-brain barrier is breached, then health problems arise.

22 Sep 2020

Smart drug delivery system may help treat spinal cord injuries and other neurological disorders

A Rutgers-led team has created a smart drug delivery system that reduces inflammation in damaged nervous tissues and may help treat spinal cord injuries and other neurological disorders.

From Rutgers University 18 Sep 2020

Protein aggregation reduces elasticity of blood vessels during aging

Deposits of a protein called "Medin", which manifest in virtually all older adults, reduce the elasticity of blood vessels during aging and hence may be a risk factor for vascular dementia.

10 Sep 2020

Researchers explore link between uncontrolled inflammation and brain's immune cells

Inspired by the need for new and better therapies for neurodegenerative diseases, such as Parkinson's disease and Alzheimer's disease, Rutgers University researchers are exploring the link between uncontrolled inflammation within the brain and the brain's immune cells, known as microglia.

9 Sep 2020

Researchers perform massive and detailed cellular energy audit

TK Adenosine triphosphate, or ATP, is the cellular energy currency that is as valuable to the human body as the dollar is to the US economy. Too high or too low levels of ATP in some cell types have been linked to a variety of diseases.

31 Aug 2020

Disrupted brain remapping causes spatial memory impairment in Alzheimer's

Alzheimer's disease is one of the most serious diseases in an aging society, yet the cause is often unclear and there is no appropriate treatment method.

20 Aug 2020

Protective anti-prion antibodies found in humans

Antibodies targeting the normal PrP version of the prion protein have been found in humans selected at random with no history of any associated transmissible spongiform encephalopathies.

18 Aug 2020

Researchers use genome editing to facilitate drug discovery based on natural fungus

Rice University scientists have won federal support for their pursuit of novel drugs to treat human disease.

11 Aug 2020

West Virginia University performs revolutionary Alzheimer's treatment

A hospital nurse for 33 years, Nanette Miller would call her husband Frank at the end of each shift to let him know she was coming home.

10 Aug 2020

Study: Amyloid-beta alters cholesterol biosynthesis in early stages of Alzheimer’s

Korea Brain Research Institute (headed by Suh Pann-ghill) announced on July 24 the discovery that an increase in amyloid-beta in the brain alters cholesterol biosynthesis, which was found by Dr. Cheon Mookyung of KBRI through RNA-seq analysis data (omics) using AI.

7 Aug 2020

Machine learning can increase effectiveness of drug repurposing for psychiatric disorders

Artificial intelligence can increase the effectiveness of drug repositioning or repurposing research, according to a study published in Translational Psychiatry.

4 Aug 2020

Specific protein found at high levels in the blood of people with early signs of Alzheimer's

Two decades or more before symptoms arise, plaques of a sticky protein called amyloid begin forming in the brains of people later diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease.

29 Jul 2020