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.

Vitae earns $14M milestone payment from Boehringer Ingelheim

Vitae Pharmaceuticals, Inc., an integrated discovery and development company, today announced that it has earned a $14 million clinical milestone payment from Boehringer Ingelheim, one of the world's 20 leading pharmaceutical companies. Vitae's 11beta-hydroxysteroid dehydrogenase (HSD)-1 is targeted for the treatment of diabetes and metabolic syndrome-related diseases in a strategic alliance with Boehringer Ingelheim. The payment recognizes Boehringer Ingelheim's recent advancement of a small molecule inhibitor of 11beta-HSD-1 into Phase I clinical trials.

29 Jun 2010

New tool could aid in diagnosing Alzheimer's, track disease progression

A trial of a novel radioactive compound readily and safely distinguished the brains of Alzheimer's disease patients from healthy volunteers on brain scans and opens the doors to making such imaging available beyond facilities that can manufacture their own radioactive compounds.

29 Jun 2010

Researchers study mechanism of human brain

Because of its intricate organization, figuring out the wiring diagram that explains how the billions of neurons in the brain are connected, and determining how they work together, remains a formidable task.

29 Jun 2010

Researchers suggest factors that predict pre-Alzheimer's condition

Mild cognitive impairment is often seen as a transition stage between the cognitive decline of normal aging and the more serious problems of Alzheimer's disease. But what leads to mild cognitive impairment?

29 Jun 2010

MRI study could prove useful in early detection of Alzheimer's disease

Scientists at the University of Kentucky's College of Medicine have identified changes in the brains of normal individuals at high risk for Alzheimer's disease that could prove important for early detection of the disease.

29 Jun 2010

Hospice care falls as more Americans spend final days in hospitals; Milwaukee hospital reports success with treatment guidelines

The Associated Press: "Americans increasingly are treated to death, spending more time in hospitals in their final days, trying last-ditch treatments that often buy only weeks of time, and racking up bills that have made medical care a leading cause of bankruptcies. More than 80 percent of people who die in the United States have a long, progressive illness such as cancer, heart failure or Alzheimer's disease."

29 Jun 2010

New research finds key proteins involved in the process of memory and learning

New research led by the University of Leicester and published in a prestigious international scientific journal has revealed for the first time the mechanism by which memories are formed.

28 Jun 2010

CM sufferers experience worse stigma than EM sufferers: Research

Researchers looking for the first time at how migraine sufferers experience the stigmatizing effects of their disease show that chronic migraine sufferers experience worse stigma than episodic migraine sufferers and more than those with other neurological diseases including stroke, epilepsy and MS.

28 Jun 2010

ARS study finds link between vitamin D and cognitive function

At a time when consumer interest in health-enhancing foods is high, Agricultural Research Service (ARS)-funded scientists have contributed to a limited but growing body of evidence of a link between vitamin D and cognitive function.

25 Jun 2010

Scientists discover characteristic amyloid plaques in retinas from Alzheimer's disease patients

The nerve cell-damaging plaque that builds up in the brain with Alzheimer's disease also builds up in the retinas of the eyes - and it shows up there earlier, leading to the prospect that noninvasive optical imaging of the eyes could lead to earlier diagnosis, intervention and monitoring of the disease, according to new research.

25 Jun 2010

Specific virus can interact with mutation in host's genes to trigger diseases: Scientists

Scientists have shown that a specific virus can interact with a mutation in the host's genes to trigger disease. The observation may help explain why many people with disease risk genes do not actually develop disease.

25 Jun 2010

Amorfix Life Sciences, QED Bioscience sign agreement to develop monoclonal antibodies

Amorfix Life Sciences and QED Bioscience announced today that they have entered into an agreement to develop high-affinity monoclonal antibodies against a number of targets for cancer. Under the agreement, QED will generate monoclonal antibodies against several disease specific epitopes on misfolded CD38 protein. The DSE's were identified by Amorfix using their proprietary ProMIS computational platform discovery technology.

24 Jun 2010

Group of tests may help predict falls in people with Parkinson's disease: Study

A group of tests may help predict which people with Parkinson's disease are more likely to fall, according to a study published in the June 23, 2010, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

24 Jun 2010

Carvedilol drug may lessen degenerative impact of Alzheimer's disease: Researchers

Researchers at Mount Sinai School of Medicine have found that the drug carvedilol, currently prescribed for the treatment of hypertension, may lessen the degenerative impact of Alzheimer's disease and promote healthy memory functions. The new findings are published in two studies in the current issues of Neurobiology of Aging and the Journal of Alzheimer's Disease.

24 Jun 2010

Cedars-Sinai researchers awarded $1.47M grant to study stem cell immune rejection response

A team of Cedars-Sinai Regenerative Medicine Institute researchers led by Terrence Town, Ph.D. has been awarded a three-year, $1.47 million grant from the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine to fund research into mechanisms for how human immune systems reject or accept transplanted brain stem cells.

24 Jun 2010

Resveratrol found in red wine neutralizes toxicity of proteins related to Alzheimer's disease: Research

An organic compound found in red wine - resveratrol - has the ability to neutralize the toxic effects of proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease, according to research led by Rensselaer Professor Peter M. Tessier. The findings, published in the May 28 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, are a step toward understanding the large-scale death of brain cells seen in certain neurodegenerative diseases.

23 Jun 2010

Regular and long enough intake of EGb 761 protects against Alzheimer's disease: GuidAge study

For the very first time, a medicine has been shown to protect against the development of Alzheimer's disease. French scientists were able to demonstrate that taking 240 mg of Ginkgo extract EGb 761 per day regularly over a period of at least 4 years can cut the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease by nearly 50%.

23 Jun 2010

MJFF supports Ceregene's CERE-120 Phase 2 study for PD with $2.5M award

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson's Research (MJFF) will provide $2.5 million to support Ceregene Inc.'s new Phase 2 study of CERE-120. This novel gene therapy product delivers the gene for neurturin, a potent neurotrophic (growth) factor that has shown potential to improve the status of degenerating neurons in both preclinical and clinical studies. CERE-120 has the potential to improve motor function as well as slow Parkinson's disease (PD) progression.

23 Jun 2010

Understanding HIV viral protein structure could lead to new molecular medicines: Study

The UK's National Physical Laboratory is involved in a collaborative project that is helping to further the understanding of HIV viral protein structure which could lead to new molecular medicines.

23 Jun 2010

Ipsen reports top line results from European study of GuidAge for Alzheimer's Dementia

Ipsen today announced top line results of GuidAge®, the longest (5 years) and largest (2,854 subjects) European study in the prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia (AD). This trial was conducted according to the most stringent international standards. The aim of this study was to assess the efficacy of a 5-year treatment with EGb 761® in the prevention of Alzheimer's Dementia in a population of elderly aged 70 or more, with memory complaint spontaneously expressed to their family physician and who lived at home at the inclusion in the study.

22 Jun 2010

Alzheimer's Disease News and Research

Further Reading

Vitae earns $14M milestone payment from Boehringer Ingelheim

New tool could aid in diagnosing Alzheimer's, track disease progression

Researchers study mechanism of human brain

Researchers suggest factors that predict pre-Alzheimer's condition

MRI study could prove useful in early detection of Alzheimer's disease

Hospice care falls as more Americans spend final days in hospitals; Milwaukee hospital reports success with treatment guidelines

New research finds key proteins involved in the process of memory and learning

CM sufferers experience worse stigma than EM sufferers: Research

ARS study finds link between vitamin D and cognitive function

Scientists discover characteristic amyloid plaques in retinas from Alzheimer's disease patients

Specific virus can interact with mutation in host's genes to trigger diseases: Scientists

Amorfix Life Sciences, QED Bioscience sign agreement to develop monoclonal antibodies

Group of tests may help predict falls in people with Parkinson's disease: Study

Carvedilol drug may lessen degenerative impact of Alzheimer's disease: Researchers

Cedars-Sinai researchers awarded $1.47M grant to study stem cell immune rejection response

Resveratrol found in red wine neutralizes toxicity of proteins related to Alzheimer's disease: Research

Regular and long enough intake of EGb 761 protects against Alzheimer's disease: GuidAge study

MJFF supports Ceregene's CERE-120 Phase 2 study for PD with $2.5M award

Understanding HIV viral protein structure could lead to new molecular medicines: Study

Ipsen reports top line results from European study of GuidAge for Alzheimer's Dementia

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