Neurodegeneration News and Research

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Neurodegeneration is the umbrella term for the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, including death of neurons.

Gut disorders forecast Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s risk years before diagnosis

Study maps clinical, genetic, and proteomic links between gut-brain disorders and neurodegeneration, showing how diabetes, vitamin D deficiency, and bowel disorders forecast Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s years in advance. Multimodal models in biobanks highlight early detection and personalized prevention opportunities.

28 Aug 2025

Unlocking neuroglia’s potential to halt neurodegeneration and restore brain homeostasis

In a revealing Genomic Press Interview published today in Brain Medicine, Professor Alexei Verkhratsky dismantles decades of neuroscience orthodoxy with discoveries that position neuroglia as active architects of brain function rather than passive cellular bystanders.

26 Aug 2025

Can diet alone slow brain aging? Scientists say evidence is still too weak

Researchers reviewing evidence in the Annual Review of Nutrition find that healthy dietary patterns may support brain aging, but caution that scientific enthusiasm currently outpaces solid proof. Multidomain strategies combining diet with exercise, cognitive training, and vascular health show greater promise.

25 Aug 2025

Positive emotion bias in aging may signal cognitive decline

As people age, they display a bias in recognizing emotions as positive-to the point of improperly labeling neutral or negative emotions as positive.

25 Aug 2025

AI and advanced microscopy reveal tangled DNA structures with nanometer precision

At school, it's often presented as a tidy double helix but scientists are revealing the varied and intricate shapes of DNA molecules.

22 Aug 2025

Research shows how lysosomes respond to stress

New research, published today in the journal Science, shows how lysosomes - organelles that act like cells' waste disposal system - respond to stress by becoming abnormally bloated, a process called lysosomal vacuolation that is associated with numerous diseases.

21 Aug 2025

Single-cell proteomic analysis uncovers hidden layers of blood cell formation

In the past decade there has been significant interest in studying the expression of our genetic code down to the level of single cells, to identify the functions and activities of any cell through the course of health or disease.

21 Aug 2025

Blocking brain damage may slow aggressive glioblastoma growth

Blocking brain damage triggered by a glioblastoma, an aggressive brain cancer, may slow the growth of the cancer and allow the brain to keep working better for longer, according to a new study led by UCL (University College London) researchers.

20 Aug 2025

AI breakthrough designs peptide drugs to target previously untreatable proteins

A study published in Nature Biotechnology reveals a powerful new use for artificial intelligence: designing small, drug-like molecules that can stick to and break down harmful proteins in the body - even when scientists don't know what those proteins look like.

13 Aug 2025

Lithium deficiency emerges as a hidden driver of Alzheimer’s

What is the earliest spark that ignites the memory-robbing march of Alzheimer’s disease? Why do some people with Alzheimer’s-like changes in the brain never go on to develop dementia? These questions have bedeviled neuroscientists for decades.

8 Aug 2025

Alzheimer’s research reaches a critical tipping point

One-third of people older than 85 in the United States are estimated to live with Alzheimer's disease today, according to the National Institute on Aging.

8 Aug 2025

Aging brains lose key proteins despite intact genetic blueprints

An international research team involving the Leibniz Institute on Aging - Fritz Lipmann Institute (FLI) in Jena, the Scuola Normale Superiore Pisa, and Stanford University has discovered that in the aging brain, certain proteins are lost even though their mRNA blueprints remain intact.

8 Aug 2025

Revolutionizing therapeutic protein design with synthetic biology

In medicine and biotechnology, the ability to evolve proteins with new or improved functions is crucial, but current methods are often slow and laborious.

8 Aug 2025

Scientists link brain lithium loss to early Alzheimer’s changes

Researchers have discovered that naturally occurring lithium in the brain is depleted early in Alzheimer’s disease, especially in the prefrontal cortex, and that restoring physiological levels with lithium orotate in mice can prevent brain damage and memory loss. The findings suggest lithium deficiency may be a modifiable risk factor for Alzheimer’s.

7 Aug 2025

Copper oxide scaffolds show promise in treating traumatic brain injury

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) remains one of the leading causes of disability worldwide. Recent research has developed a novel electrospun scaffold loaded with copper oxide (CuO@PG), which aims to restore copper homeostasis and modulate inflammation in TBI.

7 Aug 2025

Cedars-Sinai study finds new way to combat Alzheimer’s in preclinical models

In a preclinical study, Cedars-Sinai investigators found that boosting angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) in key immune cells called microglia in the brain helped protect the brains of specially bred laboratory mice against Alzheimer's disease.

6 Aug 2025

Low oxygen environment protects brain and restores movement in mice with Parkinson's

Researchers from the Broad Institute and Mass General Brigham have shown that a low-oxygen environment - similar to the thin air found at Mount Everest base camp - can protect the brain and restore movement in mice with Parkinson's-like disease.

6 Aug 2025

UC Irvine researchers discover naturally occurring compounds to rejuvenate aging brain cells

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have identified a promising nonpharmaceutical treatment that rejuvenates aging brain cells and clears away the buildup of harmful proteins associated with Alzheimer's disease.

5 Aug 2025

Researchers discover amyloid protein buildup in bone marrow of aging mice

A recent study led by a team of researchers at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine examining aging mice has provided what is believed to be the first evidence that amyloid beta protein-small, sticky protein fragment found in people with Alzheimer's disease (AD)-particles build up in the bone marrow of the animals, although not in the exact same form as the large, dense plaques found in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease.

5 Aug 2025

New insights reveal how sugar metabolism protects neurons from degeneration

Unlike most cells in the human body, neurons-the functional cells of our nervous system-cannot typically replace themselves with healthy copies after being damaged.

4 Aug 2025