Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Latest Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Researchers find amyloid precursor protein function in Alzheimer's disease

In people with Alzheimer's, the brain becomes riddled with clumps of protein, forming what are known as amyloid plaques. Now, a report appearing in the September 17th print issue of Cell appears to have found a function for the amyloid precursor protein that yields the prime ingredient in those plaques.

13 Sep 2010

Researchers develop GAL4/UAS system to study human neurological diseases

A team of University of Oklahoma researchers studying neurobiology in fruit flies (Drosophila) has developed a new method for understanding brain function with potential applications in studies of human neurological diseases.

13 Sep 2010

Resverlogix announces key changes to Phase 2 ASSURE trial

Resverlogix Corp. announces that the Company's Phase 2 clinical trial, called ASSURE (ApoA-1 Synthesis Stimulation in Acute Coronary Syndrome patients), has made important modifications to the design of the trial which have the potential to demonstrate a more powerful endpoint for the planning of future clinical trials for RVX-208.

10 Sep 2010

Highlights of 23rd Congress of European College of Neuropsychopharmacology 2010

More than 7,000 psychiatrists, neurologists, psychologists and neuroscience researchers from all over the world met at the 23rd Congress of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) from 28 August to 1 September 2010 in Amsterdam.

10 Sep 2010

Researchers discover generation of pyramidal neurons by glial cell precursors

In an unanticipated finding, researchers at the UC Davis School of Medicine have discovered that, during early adulthood, the brain produces new excitatory neurons, and that these neurons arise from non-neuronal support cells in an area of the brain that processes smell.

10 Sep 2010

Today's OpEds: Medicare's long-term liabilities; Reforming and funding native health care; Frustrations surrounding stem cell research

Under ObamaCare it will get much worse. Hospitals also will shut down or stop serving Medicare patients. … Everyone should know by now that Medicare suffers dramatic long-term deficits and unfunded liabilities, and is in need of fundamental, structural reforms. But effectively refusing to pay the doctors and hospitals that provide the medical care the program promises to seniors is no way to solve that problem (Peter Ferrara and Larry Hunter, 9/9).

10 Sep 2010

Researches discover reducing tau protein level can prevent Αβ protein transport in Alzheimer’s disease

Amyloid beta (Αβ) proteins, widely thought to cause Alzheimer's disease (AD), block the transport of vital cargoes inside brain cells. Scientists at the Gladstone Institute of Neurological Disease (GIND) have discovered that reducing the level of another protein, tau, can prevent Aβ from causing such traffic jams.

10 Sep 2010

Noscira receives FDA approval for Tideglusib drug to treat PSP

Noscira, a Grupo Zeltia subsidiary specialized in research and development of drugs to treat neurodegenerative diseases, has announced that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted Fast Track status to its neuroprotector drug Tideglusib (ZentylorTM) to treat Progressive Supranuclear Palsy (PSP), a fast-advancing fatal degenerative brain disorder.

10 Sep 2010

Kennedy Krieger Institute receives grant for Alzheimer's disease research in Down syndrome patients

Early signs of Alzheimer's disease can be difficult to distinguish from the normal aging process in any older adult. For adults with Down syndrome, who are particularly vulnerable to Alzheimer's disease, it is even more so. Because effective intervention needs to begin as early in the disease process as possible, prior to the onset of the irreversible impacts on the brain that are characteristic of this devastating disease, early diagnosis is of critical importance. To address crucial gaps in knowledge about Alzheimer's disease in adults with Down syndrome, the Kennedy Krieger Institute has been awarded an $8.5 million grant from the National Institutes of Health (NIH).

10 Sep 2010

FDA approves Abreu BTT 700 System for temperature monitoring

Brain Tunnelgenix Technologies Corp. announced today that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has granted the company clearance to market its Abreu BTT 700 System for continuous temperature monitoring.

10 Sep 2010

National Dementia Awareness Week

This National Dementia Awareness Week 15-22 September, Alzheimer’s Australia and National Dementia Awareness Week Ambassador, Dr Andrew Rochford will be promoting the benefit of early diagnosis and where worried friends and family can access help.

9 Sep 2010

Researchers discover first compound to activate enzyme telomerase in human body

Sierra Sciences, in collaboration with TA Sciences, Geron Corporation, PhysioAge, and the Spanish National Cancer Research Center (CNIO), has announced the first compound ever discovered that activates the enzyme telomerase in the human body - a critical prerequisite for technology that could arrest or reverse the aging process in humans.

9 Sep 2010

Scientists develop new strategy for quicker detection of biomarkers that indicate disease

Scientists at the UK's National Physical Laboratory have developed a new strategy for quicker and more precise detection of biomarkers - proteins which indicate disease. The work could pave the way for new tools to detect early stages of Alzheimer's and cancer at the molecular level.

9 Sep 2010

New gene required for memory formation identified

A team led by a Scripps Research Institute scientist has for the first time identified a new gene that is required for memory formation in Drosophila, the common fruit fly. The gene may have similar functions in humans, shedding light on neurological disorders such as Alzheimer's disease or human learning disabilities.

9 Sep 2010

Study suggests observing food label guidelines may lead to weight loss

Nutritional science and food marketing has become so sophisticated in recent decades that a trip to the supermarket can require a complete nutritional re-education. The average consumer needs to be on guard against preservatives, added fat, colorings, and calories, false advertising, and sophisticated but misleading labels. Although guidelines for the information of food labels have gotten a bad rap in recent years a new study published in the Journal of Consumer Affairs suggests that observing them may lead to weight loss, especially for women entering their middle years.

9 Sep 2010

Researchers discover low levels of DHA associated with chronic neurodegenerative disease

UC Irvine researchers have discovered that markedly depleted amounts of an omega-3 fatty acid in brain tissue samples from Alzheimer's patients may be due to the liver's inability to produce the complex fat, also contained in fish-oil supplements.Low levels of docosahexaenoic acid, or DHA, have been associated with the chronic neurodegenerative disease affecting millions of Americans, but no cause had been identified.

9 Sep 2010

Scientists discover natural mechanism to discard amyloid protein

Chemists at the University of California, San Diego, have identified how a protein that accumulates in the brains of people with Alzheimer's disease interferes with the ability of cells to get rid of debris. They also found a natural mechanism by which this protein, amyloid beta, itself may be discarded.

9 Sep 2010

Researchers synthesize new compounds to reduce A-beta 42 peptide in Alzheimer's disease

A team of scientists, led by University of California, San Diego School of Medicine researchers, has synthesized hundreds of new compounds with the potential of reducing the production of the A-beta 42 peptide, a primary component of Alzheimer's disease (AD).

9 Sep 2010

GE Healthcare's flutemetamol phase 2 study results published in 'Annals of Neurology'

GE Healthcare announced today that results from its multicenter phase 2 study of flutemetamol were published in the September issue of Annals of Neurology. Flutemetamol is an investigational positron emission tomography (PET) imaging agent being developed by GE Healthcare, in the field of brain imaging.

9 Sep 2010

ECNP honors Kaj Blennow with 2010 Neuropsychopharmacology Award

The European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP) is pleased to announce Kaj Blennow as the recipient of the 2010 ECNP Neuropsychopharmacology Award in recognition of his original and influential contributions to Alzheimer's disease research. The ECNP Neuropsychopharmacology Award is presented annually and recognises distinguished research in neuropsychopharmacology and closely related disciplines. The award is accompanied by a prize of - 20,000.

8 Sep 2010