Amyloidosis News and Research

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Amyloidosis is the term applied to a group of conditions caused by deposits of an abnormal protein called amyloid. This rare but serious condition affects between 1 and 5 people in every 100,000 each year in the UK. The condition is mainly seen among the elderly.

New antibodies may halt key pathological mechanisms across several neurological diseases

A new kind of antibody targets a feature shared by proteins thought to cause the most damage in Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, and related conditions, creating potential for a unified treatment approach.

29 Aug 2017

SNMMI recognizes contributions to nuclear medicine and molecular imaging at 2017 annual meeting

The Society of Nuclear Medicine and Molecular Imaging (SNMMI), an international scientific and medical organization, recognized contributions to the field of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging during its 2017 Annual Meeting in Denver, Colorado. Several awards ceremonies were held to recognize the valuable role SNMMI members play in advancing the diagnosis and treatment of heart disease, cancer and neurological conditions.

2 Aug 2017

Researchers unravel how acidic conditions favor protein misfolding in deadly diseases

Using an array of modern biochemical and structural biology techniques, researchers from Boston University School of Medicine have begun to unravel the mystery of how acidity influences a small protein called serum amyloid A (SAA).

28 Jul 2017

Blood-based screening test can detect key Alzheimer's marker

Decades before people with Alzheimer's disease develop memory loss and confusion, their brains become dotted with plaques made of a sticky protein - called amyloid beta - that is thought to contribute to the disease and its progression.

19 Jul 2017

Black light helps determine disease extent of melasma in pregnant women

Researchers at Boston Medical Center and Boston University School of Medicine have found that using a black light, or Wood's light, helps dermatologists determine disease extent of melasma, a hyperpigmentation condition that causes brown and gray patches to appear on the face.

17 Jul 2017

Diabetes leads to increase in autonomic and small fiber neuropathy

Autonomic and small fiber neuropathy used to be considered rare conditions. But with approximately 30 million Americans affected by diabetes – one of the main underlying causes for these diseases – it's an emerging problem.

13 Jul 2017

Modified skin biopsy could provide faster and better diagnosis of inherited, fatal nerve disease

Johns Hopkins physicians report success in a small study of a modified skin biopsy that hastens the earlier diagnosis of an inherited and progressively fatal nerve disease and seems to offer a clearer view of the disorder's severity and progression.

11 Jul 2017

Newly developed ultrafast cardiac imaging test changes clinical management in one-third of patients

Researchers in the UK and Peru have developed a faster and cheaper cardiac imaging test that can be used in developing countries, according to the results of the INCA-Peru study presented today at EuroCMR 2017.

26 May 2017

Boosting clinical trial research in London

Richmond Pharmacology have opened their fourth clinical trial facility and the new site has been used for this type of work for more than 30 years. It's in an ideal location embedded in the University and teaching hospital campus.

11 May 2017

Researchers produce images that predate formation of beta-amyloid plaques in Alzheimer’s disease

Researchers at Lund University in Sweden have used the MAX IV synchrotron in Lund - the strongest of its kind in the world - to produce images that predate the formation of toxic clumps of beta-amyloid, the protein believed to be at the root of Alzheimer's disease.

13 Mar 2017

New London Major Early-Phase Contract Research Center Opened on Rare Disease Day

Richmond Pharmacology, one of the UK’s leading early-phase contract research organisations, have today opened their new research facility in London Bridge – at the site formerly known as the Guy’s Drug Research Unit. The move is a significant boost to the UK’s efforts to continue to grow as a global hub for Life Sciences, an area of strategic importance outlined in the Government’s recent industrial strategy.

1 Mar 2017

Scientists identify 'molecular barcode' in blood samples that can predict survival of Ebola patients

Scientists have identified a 'molecular barcode' in the blood of patients with Ebola virus disease that can predict whether they are likely to survive or die from the viral infection.

19 Jan 2017

Ionis announces FDA approval of first SMA drug in the U.S for pediatric and adult patients

Ionis Pharmaceuticals, Inc. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved SPINRAZATM (nusinersen) under Priority Review for the treatment of spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) in pediatric and adult patients.

26 Dec 2016

PET imaging can accurately identify difficult-to-diagnose cardiac amyloidosis

Reston, Virginia - Researchers at Princess Alexandra Hospital, Brisbane, Australia, have demonstrated that cardiac amyloidosis (abnormal deposits of proteins in the heart), which is notoriously difficult to diagnose, can be visualized noninvasively with positron emission tomography (PET) using the radiotracer fluorine-18 (F-18)-florbetaben.

1 Nov 2016

New imaging technique may help detect amyloid-related heart failure

A type of heart failure caused by a build-up of amyloid can be accurately diagnosed and prognosticated with an imaging technique, eliminating the need for a biopsy, according to a multicenter study led by researchers at Columbia University Medical Center.

24 Aug 2016

Long-term antibiotic treatment slows progression of Alzheimer's disease through changes in gut bacteria

Long-term treatment with broad spectrum antibiotics decreased levels of amyloid plaques, a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease, and activated inflammatory microglial cells in the brains of mice in a new study by neuroscientists from the University of Chicago.

21 Jul 2016

TSRI study reveals new approach to intervene in deadly disease

In a new study, scientists at The Scripps Research Institute have identified drug candidates that can boost a cell's ability to catch the "typos" in protein production that can cause a deadly disease called amyloidosis.

From Paxman 21 Jul 2016

JAD announces recipient of 2016 Alzheimer Award

The Journal of Alzheimer's Disease is pleased to announce that Mark W. Bondi, PhD, ABPP/CN, Professor of Psychiatry at UC San Diego and Director of the Neuropsychological Assessment Unit at the VA San Diego Healthcare System, has been chosen as the recipient of the 2016 Alzheimer Award presented by the journal in recognition of his outstanding work on the development of a novel and promising method of staging preclinical Alzheimer's disease (AD) based on number of abnormal biomarkers that is predictive of progression to mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and AD.

15 Jul 2016

Alnylam reports new results from investigational RNAi therapeutic programs

Alnylam Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (Nasdaq: ALNY), the leading RNAi therapeutics company, announced today preliminary results from its ongoing Phase 2 open-label extension (OLE) studies with patisiran and revusiran, both investigational RNAi therapeutics targeting transthyretin (TTR) for the treatment of hereditary TTR-mediated amyloidosis (hATTR amyloidosis).

6 Jul 2016

Novel animal model helps understand mechanisms that lead to multiple myeloma

Researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center at the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine have developed an animal model that allows them to better understand the mechanisms that lead to the development of multiple myeloma, a hematologic cancer of plasma cells, and the amyloidosis that sometimes accompanies it. The study was published in the journal Scientific Reports.

6 May 2016