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.

Herb rosemary fights free radical damage in the brain

Rosemary not only tastes good in culinary dishes such as Rosemary chicken and lamb, but scientists have now found it is also good for your brain.

31 Oct 2007

New brain marker predicts cognitive decline and the development of Alzheimer's disease

Duke University Medical Center researchers have used imaging technology to identify a new marker that may help identify those at greatest risk for cognitive decline and the development of Alzheimer's disease.

31 Oct 2007

Alzheimer's may progress more rapidly in people with high blood pressure or atrial fibrillation

While current medications for Alzheimer's disease are effective for some patients in slowing the rate of AD progression, many patients do not benefit from the treatments or cannot tolerate them, says lead researcher Michelle M. Mielke, Ph.D., of the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.

31 Oct 2007

Lithium commonly used to treat bi-polar disorder increases lifespan in Nematode worms

Nematode worms treated with lithium show a 46 percent increase in lifespan, raising the tantalizing question of whether humans taking the mood affecting drug are also taking an anti-aging medication.

31 Oct 2007

Aggregation propensity, amyloid peptide toxicity and Alzheimer disease

Cells have evolved multiple mechanisms to ensure proper folding, but a number of molecular and biophysical events - such as changes in pH or temperature, mutations, and oxidation - can disrupt a protein's native shape.

31 Oct 2007

One in seven Americans over the age of 70 suffers from dementia

About 3.4 million people, or 13.9 percent of the population age 71 and older, have some form of dementia, the study found. As expected, the prevalence of dementia increased dramatically with age, from five percent of those aged 71 to 79 to 37.4 percent of those age 90 and older.

31 Oct 2007

Scientists use shared genome data to confirm SORL1 gene linked to Alzheimer's

Until recently, only one of the approximately 30,000 genes in the human genome has been linked to risk of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD).

29 Oct 2007

Therapeutic gene expression can be sustainable for 1 year

Researchers at the Board of Governors Gene Therapeutics Research Institute at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center have shown for the first time that it is possible to sustain therapeutic gene expression in the central nervous system for up to a year, even in the presence of an anti-viral immune response mechanism that is normally present in humans.

28 Oct 2007

Hypertension drugs may prevent Alzheimer's Disease

New research is suggesting that some of the drugs commonly used to treat hypertension (high blood pressure) may offer another benefit.

28 Oct 2007

FDA warns about 'stay awake drug' Provigil

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning in connection with the drug Provigil because of dangerous side effects.

28 Oct 2007

Scientists discover new causes for neurodegeneration

Diseases that cause neurons to break-down, such as Alzheimer's, Multiple Sclerosis and Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (Mad Cow Disease), continue to be elusive to scientists and resistant to treatments.

25 Oct 2007

Sigma-Aldrich and Oxford BioMedica win key ruling in Open Biosystems patent case

Sigma-Aldrich and Oxford BioMedica have announced that they received a key order confirming the strength and validity of intellectual property owned by Oxford BioMedica and licensed exclusively in the research field to Sigma-Aldrich.

25 Oct 2007

Valsartan might help prevent Alzheimer's disease

Alzheimer disease (AD), a neurodegenerative disease that is the most common form of dementia, is characterized by the formation in the brain of plaques containing misfolded beta-amyloid protein.

25 Oct 2007

New understanding of vagus nerve's role in regulating inflammation

It used to be dogma that the brain was shut away from the actions of the immune system, shielded from the outside forces of nature.

24 Oct 2007

A better education means dementia comes later but when it does it's faster

According to new research a high level of education delays a decline in memory as people age, but once the decline begins it occurs faster.

24 Oct 2007

Height may point to a biological basis for pedophilia

Height may point to a biological basis for pedophilia, according to new research released by the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH).

22 Oct 2007

Improving Europe's image

The European Science Foundation calls for greater collaboration across Europe on research in medical imaging.

22 Oct 2007

Researcher identify specific cell that causes eye cancer, disproving long-held theory

Investigators at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital have identified the cell that gives rise to the eye cancer retinoblastoma, disproving a long-standing principle of nerve growth and development.

19 Oct 2007