Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Latest Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Study sheds light on role of red raspberries in metabolically-based chronic diseases

Components in red raspberries may have anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and metabolic stabilizing activity, according to a comprehensive review of the available scientific literature published in the January issue of Advances in Nutrition.

10 Feb 2016

Penn investigators devise new method to map 'transcriptome'

A new way of mapping the "transcriptome" -- the collection of RNA read-outs that are expressed by a cell's active genes -- has been devised by researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

10 Feb 2016

New discovery takes medical professionals a leap forward to effectively diagnose Alzheimer's disease

Medical professionals have to conduct a long series of tests to assess a patient's memory impairment and cognitive skills, functional abilities, and behavioral changes to accurately diagnose Alzheimer's disease. They also have to execute costly brain imagining scans and even, sometimes, invasive cerebral spinal fluid tests to rule out other diseases. The process is laborious at best -- and subjective at worst.

9 Feb 2016

Aging brains work differently than younger brains, say cognitive scientists

Cognitive scientists have found more evidence that aging brains work differently than younger brains when performing the same memory task, pointing to a potentially new direction for age-related cognitive care and exploration.

9 Feb 2016

2020 dementia challenge to be tackled by MOOC

The University of Derby’s Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) titled ‘Bridging the Dementia Divide’ is back by popular demand after the University received high levels of requests to run the course again.

From University of Derby Online Learning 9 Feb 2016

Benzodiazepine dementia risk refuted

Benzodiazepines, commonly used by older adults to manage sleep, anxiety and depressive disorders, do not increase the risk of dementia or hasten cognitive decline, study findings show.

8 Feb 2016

Past experience alters the brain circuitry responsible for object recognition

New research from the University of Guelph on the brain and memory could help in developing therapies for people with schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease.

8 Feb 2016

Clinical observations: replacing paper with mobiles? An interview with Eran David

Replacing paper with technology has significant safety ramifications. Using a mobile device for electronic observations increases the accuracy of documentation and score calculations.

From iMDsoft 8 Feb 2016

Novel quantitative method may reduce or eliminate need for invasive biopsies

Scientists have identified a quantitative method to measure changes in biomarkers, which may reduce or eliminate the need for invasive biopsies. The method, described in the February 2016 issue of The FASEB Journal uses a novel chimera design of DNA and small DNA with a companion contrast agent to allow antibodies to cross cellular membranes.

8 Feb 2016

Lamin nucleoskeleton disordered in Alzheimer's

Brain cell death in Alzheimer's disease is linked to disruption of a skeleton that surrounds the nucleus of the cells, a researcher in the School of Medicine at The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio said.

5 Feb 2016

People with traumatic brain injuries may have buildup of plaques related to Alzheimer's disease

A new study suggests that people with brain injuries following head trauma may have buildup of the plaques related to Alzheimer's disease in their brains. The research is published in the February 3, 2016, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

4 Feb 2016

Mercury may not thwart seafood brain benefits

Accumulation of mercury in the brain from eating seafood does not appear to lead to Alzheimer’s disease neuropathology, shows research published in JAMA.

4 Feb 2016

BDNF gene expression signals cognitive reserve against AD progression

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor gene expression contributes to slowing of cognitive decline in older adults and may protect against the effects of Alzheimer’s disease pathology, researchers report in Neurology.

4 Feb 2016

Elder financial exploitation resulting from age-related cognitive decline pose major economic threats

Protecting the wealth of older adults should be a high priority for banks, insurance companies, and others, according to the latest edition of Public Policy & Aging Report (PP&AR). Elder financial exploitation and diminished financial capacity resulting from age-related cognitive impairments both pose major economic threats, the issue finds.

4 Feb 2016

NJHF awards 30 grants for NJ researchers working on health-related research

New Jersey Health Foundation has awarded 30 grants totaling more than $1 million for researchers in New Jersey who are working on health-related research that demonstrates exciting potential.

4 Feb 2016

Seafood consumption may benefit older adults at risk for Alzheimer's disease

New research published Feb. 2 in the Journal of the American Medical Association found that older adults with a major risk gene for Alzheimer's disease known as APOE?4 who ate at least one seafood serving per week showed fewer signs of Alzheimer's-related brain changes. In contrast, this association was not found in the brains of volunteers who ate fish weekly but did not carry the risk gene.

3 Feb 2016

Continuing weight loss from midlife predicts MCI risk

Increasing weight loss from middle age through the later stages of life may be an indicator of mild cognitive impairment, suggest study findings.

2 Feb 2016

Saliva gland test may help diagnose early Parkinson's disease

Researchers from Mayo Clinic in Arizona and Banner Sun Health Research Institute have determined that testing a portion of a person's submandibular gland may be a way to diagnose early Parkinson's disease. The study was published this month in Movement Disorders, the official journal of the International Parkinson and Movement Disorders Society.

2 Feb 2016

Depression symptoms increase risk for heart disease, stroke in middle-aged and older adults

Depression and its symptoms increase as people age, and have been linked to heart disease and stroke in both middle-aged and older adults. But whether depression and its symptoms are risk factors for these two dangerous conditions has been unclear.

2 Feb 2016

Understanding crucial role of 'healthy' brain in preventing memory failures linked to Alzheimer's disease

The mechanisms underlying the stability and plasticity of neural circuits in the hippocampus, the part of the brain responsible for spatial memory and the memory of everyday facts and events, has been a major focus of study in the field of neuroscience. Understanding precisely how a "healthy" brain stores and processes information is crucial to preventing and reversing the memory failures associated with Alzheimer's disease (AD), the most common form of late-life dementia.

2 Feb 2016