Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Latest Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Protein pulling advances in protein folding science

Rice University physicists have unveiled an innovative way of finding out how proteins get their shape based on how they unfold when pulled apart.

20 Jul 2007

Eat a good diet and exercise to live longer

The traditional prescriptions for a healthy life sensible diet, exercise and weight control extend life by reducing signaling through a specific pathway in the brain, according to Howard Hughes Medical Institute researchers who discovered the connection while studying long-lived mice.

20 Jul 2007

Clue to preventing Alzheimer's found in Vindaloo

A new study by researchers in the United States has found during laboratory tests that tumeric, a spice used in curries may offer protection against Alzheimer's disease.

19 Jul 2007

Affiris alzheimer's vaccine in clinical trial

The Alzheimer's vaccine known as Affitope AD01 from Affiris has now entered the clinical phase of its development. All relevant regulatory and statutory approvals have been secured and this innovative treatment is now being tested on humans for the first time.

19 Jul 2007

RNA essential for survival of mature neurons

There are lots of things that brain cells need to survive. Add to that list microRNAs.

19 Jul 2007

Role prefrontal cortex plays in memory

A research with experimental rats carried out by the Institute of Neuroscience of the UAB describes the brain region connected to how our declarative memory functions.

18 Jul 2007

Curry chemical bisdemethoxycurcumin may clear amyloid beta plaques

FINDINGS: Researchers isolated bisdemethoxycurcumin, the active ingredient of curcuminoids – a natural substance found in turmeric root – that may help boost the immune system in clearing amyloid beta, a peptide that forms the plaques found in Alzheimer's disease.

17 Jul 2007

Women's cognitive decline associated with interrupted or fitful sleep

Women who experienced cognitive decline over a 13 to 15 year period after age 65 were more likely to sleep poorly than women whose cognition did not decline, according to a study led by researchers at the San Francisco VA Medical Center (SFVAMC).

17 Jul 2007

Older women with memory problems at higher risk of sleep disorders

Older women experiencing memory loss are more likely than women without cognitive decline to have problems falling asleep and staying asleep, according to a study published in the July 17, 2007, issue of Neurology ®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

17 Jul 2007

How children with brain tumors perform at school

While children who have had brain tumors perform worse in school than healthy kids, grades in foreign language are the most affected and girls have a harder time than boys in getting good grades, according to a study published in the July 17, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

17 Jul 2007

Rochester now offers gene test to detect Batten disease

Rochester has become one of only a handful of communities around the world to offer a genetic test to detect Batten disease, a deadly inherited disorder.

12 Jul 2007

Detecting cognitive impairment in primary care: Performance assessment of three screening instruments

A new study published in the June issue of Journal of Alzheimer's Disease demonstrates the accuracy and validity of a new mathematics-based memory assessment developed by Medical Care Corporation to detect early signs of memory impairment due to Alzheimer's disease and other related disorders.

11 Jul 2007

Top brain experts say alcohol does not destroy brain cells

At an international neural stem cell conference in Australia, ninety of the world's top scientists in neural stem cell and brain development research, from 11 different countries were brought together last month by the Queensland Brain Institute (QBI).

11 Jul 2007

Brain lesions may be sign of more widespread disease in the brain

Lesions commonly seen on MRI in the brains of older patients may be a sign of potentially more extensive injury to the brain tissue, according to a recent study conducted by researchers at the Duke University Medical Center, in Durham, NC.

10 Jul 2007

Scientists identify two brain networks in Parkinson's

The disease that causes tremors, rigidity and slowed movements in a million Americans also targets another brain network that regulates cognitive thought and the ability to carry out everyday tasks.

10 Jul 2007

People with early Parkinson's more likely to develop hallucinations, sleepiness and swelling

People with early Parkinson's disease report a higher than anticipated development or worsening of hallucinations, sleepiness, and swelling.

10 Jul 2007

New gene mutation linked to frontotemporal dementia

Researchers have identified a new gene mutation linked to frontotemporal dementia, according to a study published in the July 10, 2007, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

10 Jul 2007

New skin patch offers help for Alzheimer's victims

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the United States has given approval for the first skin patch to treat Alzheimer's disease.

9 Jul 2007

New criteria for probable Alzheimer's disease

An international group of Alzheimer's disease (AD) experts have proposed new criteria for the reasearch diagnosis of the condition, as they argue the existing criteria are out of date due to unprecedented growth of scientific knowledge in the field. The proposal is put forward in a Position Paper published early Online and in the August edition of The Lancet Neurology.

9 Jul 2007

Exercise reduces inflammation

Although a number of studies have suggested that regular exercise reduces inflammation a condition that is predictive of cardiovascular and other diseases, such as diabetes it is still not clear whether there is a definitive link.

9 Jul 2007