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.

Astrocytes Play Key Role in Memory Storage and Recall, Study Shows

A study published in Nature by researchers at Baylor College of Medicine changes the way we understand memory.

7 Nov 2024

A New Statistical Method to Mitigate AI Bias in Genetic Research

Researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison are cautioning that the growing use of artificial intelligence techniques in genetics and medicine may result in incorrect inferences regarding the relationship between genes and physical traits, such as risk factors for diseases like diabetes.

5 Nov 2024

APOE4 and Microglia Together Drive Alzheimer's Protein Deposits

In healthy brains, immune cells called microglia patrol for damage, clearing away debris and harmful proteins. But in the presence of the APOE4 protein-;the most important genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease-;the same cells cause harmful inflammation and clumps of misfolded proteins, according to a new study by scientists at Gladstone Institutes.

5 Nov 2024

Novel Approach to Isolating and Quantifying EV Cargo for Disease Diagnosis

Parkinson's disease (PD) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are examples of brain illnesses that begin to develop in patients far earlier than the onset of their initial clinical symptoms.

4 Nov 2024

Necroptosis Emerges as a Key Target in Alzheimer's Disease

Alzheimer's disease is characterized by a progressive loss of nerve cells leading to a decline in memory and cognition. A team of researchers at KU Leuven and VIB explored the molecular sequence of events in this cellular demise and identified specific inhibitors that could prevent the loss of nerve cells in different mouse models of the disease.

1 Nov 2024

Personalized Mini-Brains Provide Insight into Autism Spectrum Disorder

Using stem cells generated from patients with a rare and severe form of autism spectrum disorder and intellectual disability, Scripps Research scientists have grown personalized "mini-brains" (or organoids) to study the disorder in new detail.

24 Oct 2024

A Novel Regulator of RNA Processing in Alzheimer's Disease

A research team from the University of Barcelona's Institute of Neurosciences described a novel molecular mechanism that modifies the process of protein synthesis and impacts RNA processing in Alzheimer's patients' brains.

21 Oct 2024

A New Technique Reveals the Behavior of OPCs in the Brain

Imagine yourself sometime in the far future aboard a routine rocket to Mars. Someone just spilled their drink. Without gravity, it collects in floating blobs that ripple right before your eyes. Now freeze.

14 Oct 2024

Two Alzheimer’s Genetic Risk Factors Trigger Harmful Inflammation in Females

Weill Cornell Medicine investigators have found that two genetic variants that confer high risk of Alzheimer's disease (AD) together trigger a harmful inflammatory response in the brain's immune cells, particularly in females, in a preclinical model.

1 Oct 2024

Potassium Isotope Ratios: A Potential Biomarker for Early Alzheimer's Disease Diagnosis

Potassium isotope ratios in serum show promise as biomarkers for Alzheimer's disease, revealing significant differences between patients and healthy controls.

16 Sep 2024

Single-Cell RNA Sequencing Reveals Cellular Changes in Early Alzheimer's Disease

An analysis of more than 1.6 million brain cells from older adults has captured the cellular changes that occur in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, potentially revealing new routes for preventing the most common cause of dementia in older individuals.

29 Aug 2024

Mitochondrial DNA 'Jumps' to Chromosomes, Potentially Impacting Lifespan

As direct descendants of ancient bacteria, mitochondria have always been a little alien.

23 Aug 2024

Revealing Neural Basis of Categorizing and Remembering Novel Information

Scientists at the University of California, Irvine have pinpointed the brain cells involved in remembering specific details of events.

22 Aug 2024

Single-Cell Analysis Uncovers Impact of TREM2 Mutation on Beta-Amyloid Plaques

Researchers led by the University of California, Irvine have discovered how the TREM2 R47H genetic mutation causes certain brain areas to develop abnormal protein clumps, called beta-amyloid plaques, associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease.

8 Aug 2024

Breakthrough Method Captures Aging Impact on Alzheimer’s Disease in Lab-Grown Neurons

Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have developed a way to capture the effects of aging in the development of Alzheimer's disease.

2 Aug 2024

Breakthrough in Understanding Brain's Master Protein

Proteins engage in intricate molecular movements to fulfill their biological roles. The NMDAR protein, crucial for brain function, performs a particularly complex dance.

1 Aug 2024

Study Challenges Current Understanding of Parkinson's and Lewy Body Disease Onset

Early detection of Alzheimer's disease-related changes in Parkinson's disease and dementia with Lewy bodies could be made possible by monitoring the amyloid-β (Aβ) and phosphorylated tau (p-tau) proteins.

1 Aug 2024

Rapid Parkinson's Model Opens Door to Personalized Treatments

Scientists at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, a key member of the Mass General Brigham healthcare system, have created a model that swiftly transforms stem cells into brain cells exhibiting protein structures associated with Parkinson’s disease (PD).

30 Jul 2024

Traffic-Related Ultrafine Particles Cause Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Olfactory Mucosa

Ultrafine particles, UFPs, the smallest contributors to air pollution, hinder the function of mitochondria in human olfactory mucosa cells, a new study shows.

25 Jul 2024

Oligodendrocytes as Producers of Amyloid Beta in Alzheimer's Disease

Oligodendrocytes are an important source of amyloid beta (Aβ) and play a key role in promoting neuronal dysfunction in Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a study published July 23, 2024 in the open-access journal PLOS Biology by Rikesh Rajani and Marc Aurel Busche from the UK Dementia Research Institute at University College London, and colleagues.

24 Jul 2024