News • Before symptoms develop
Novel MRI approach identifies Alzheimer's early
A mathematical analysis of data obtained with a MRI approach can identify brain cell damage in people at early stages of Alzheimer's.
Alzheimer's
News • Large study
Blood test for Alzheimer’s highly accurate
When combined with genetic risk factors, the test was up to 93 percent accurate at identifying people at risk of Alzheimer's dementia.
News • Brain study
Diagnosing neurological diseases before symptoms occur
Cleveland Clinic has launched a landmark study to better understand why millions of people around the world suffer from brain diseases, with the goal of pinpointing disease biomarkers early, well before clinical symptoms present themselves.
News • Intra-nasal administration
Microrobots for treating neurological diseases
The joint research team of Prof. Hongsoo Choi (DGIST) & Prof. Sung Won Kim (Seoul St. Mary’s Hospital), developed an hNTSC-based microrobot for minimally invasive delivery into the brain tissue via the intranasal pathway.
News • Neurodegeneration
Scientists identify the cause of Alzheimer’s progression in the brain
For the first time, researchers have used human data to quantify the speed of different processes that lead to Alzheimer’s disease and found that it develops in a very different way than previously thought. Their results could have important implications for the development of potential treatments.
News • Brain stimulation
Infrared light helmet might aid dementia patients
Researchers at Durham University are working on a new infrared light therapy that might have the potential to help people with dementia. In the approach, people wear a specially adapted helmet which delivers infrared light deep into the brain for six-minutes per treatment. This stimulates mitochondria that generate most of the chemical energy needed to power the biochemical reaction in the…
News • microRNAs hint at cognitive decline
Researchers find warning signs for dementia in the blood
Researchers at the DZNE and the University Medical Center Göttingen (UMG) have identified molecules in the blood that can indicate impending dementia. Their findings, which are presented in the scientific journal “EMBO Molecular Medicine”, are based on human studies and laboratory experiments. Various university hospitals across Germany were also involved in the investigations.
News • Dementia prevention
‘Blue spot’ in the brain helps detecting Alzheimer’s early
A miniscule area in the brain, known as the locus coeruleus (LC), or blue spot, can help to identify an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease at a very early stage. The LC is hidden deep in the brainstem and can only be detected with advanced MRI equipment. Heidi Jacobs (Maastricht University/Harvard Medical School) used MRI scans to show that the tau protein can begin to spread in the LC three…
Video • Detecting dementia in the blood
New promising approach for Alzheimer's diagnostics
If the suspicion of Alzheimer's disease creeps up, those affected must prepare themselves for lengthy and complex procedures until the case is clear. A team from Empa and the Cantonal Hospital of St. Gallen is now in the process of developing a blood test that will enable a reliable diagnosis using atomic force microscopy (AFM).
News • Fastball EEG
EEG test could increase early diagnosis of Alzheimer's
A two-minute passive-test that measures people’s brain waves in response to a series of images, 'Fastball EEG', could help expand early dementia diagnosis.
News • Ground-breaking
Researchers identify likely cause of Alzheimer’s disease
The study identified that a probable cause of Alzheimer's disease was the leakage from blood into the brain of fat-carrying particles transporting toxic proteins.
News • Aβ oligomers role in dementia
Alzheimer's: finding the cause of toxic clumps
Small aggregates of proteins known as Aβ oligomers are suspected as the main cause for the development of Alzheimer’s disease. However, it is not yet clear where and under what conditions these toxic aggregates form.
News • Early diagnosis proteins
Study identifies 15 new biomarkers for pre-dementia
A study by an international research group identified 15 novel biomarkers that are linked to late-onset dementias. These biomarkers are proteins, which predict cognitive decline and subsequent increased risk of dementia already 20 years before the disease onset. The proteins are related to immune system dysfunction, blood-brain-barrier dysfunction, vascular pathologies, and central insulin…
News • Cognitive decline
'Brain fingerprints' help doctors detect neurological disease
An EPFL scientist has found that brain fingerprints – or maps of the neural connections within our brain – can be used to detect a decline in cognitive ability. That’s because the fingerprints are harder to detect in people who already have mild cognitive impairment.
News • Medication development platform
Smart biomarkers to find new drugs against brain diseases
Dr. Hayder Amin and Dr. Caghan Kizil from the DZNE’s Dresden site aim to speed up developing drugs against brain diseases through cutting-edge technology. To this end, they are generating an innovative technology platform, termed “i3D-Markers”, based on high-density microelectrode arrays and 3-dimensional networks of human neurons. Compounds to be tested will be dripped onto this setup, and…
News • PET imaging
Super-resolution enables detailed brain imaging
A new imaging technique has the potential to detect neurological disorders at their earliest stages, enabling physicians to diagnose and treat patients more quickly.
News • Neurology
Chemical reactions for understanding Alzheimer's disease
Research teams from TU Darmstadt, British and US universities are focusing on one possible main process that leads to the death of brain cells in their investigation of the causes and mechanisms of Alzheimer's disease.
Aducanumab
FDA grants accelerated approval for Alzheimers drug
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved Aduhelm (aducanumab) for the treatment of Alzheimer’s, a debilitating disease affecting 6.2 million Americans. Aduhelm was approved using the accelerated approval pathway, which can be used for a drug for a serious or life-threatening illness that provides a meaningful therapeutic advantage over existing treatments.
News • Battle for the brain
New Alzheimer's treatment approach targets tau
A new idea for treating Alzheimer’s disease could eradicate the toxic proteins most closely linked to cognitive decline in the places where they do the most damage, a study from researchers at Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons suggests. The study was published online in Science Translational Medicine.
News • Challenges of an aging society
Dementia and gun ownership: an issue that needs regulation
In Sweden, there are over 2 million legally owned firearms. At the same time, up to 150,000 people live with a diagnosis of dementia. In an aging society such as Sweden, legislators will face challenges in gun ownership. A new registry-based observational study by researchers from NVS, Karolinska Institutet, published in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease shows a need for strategies for this…
News • Tau pathology in the brain
Defining the 4 subtypes of Alzheimer's
Alzheimer's disease is characterized by the abnormal accumulation and spread of the tau protein in the brain. An international study can now show how tau spreads according to four distinct patterns that lead to different symptoms with different prognoses of the affected individuals. The study was published in Nature Medicine.
News • From foe to friend?
Some Alzheimer’s plaques may be protective, not destructive
One of the characteristic hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is the buildup of amyloid-beta plaques in the brain. Most therapies designed to treat AD target these plaques, but they’ve largely failed in clinical trials. New research by scientists at the Salk Institute upends conventional views of the origin of one prevalent type of plaque, indicating a reason why treatments have been…
News • Neurodegeneration research
Alzheimer's: Faster accumulation of tau protein in women's brains
Alzheimer’s disease seems to progress faster in women than in men. The protein tau accumulates at a higher rate in women, according to research from Lund University in Sweden. The study was recently published in Brain. Over 30 million people suffer from Alzheimer’s disease worldwide, making it the most common form of dementia. Tau and beta-amyloid are two proteins known to aggregate and…
News • DZNE and Eisai team up
Research collaboration to fight neurodegenerative disorders
The German Center for Neurodegenerative Diseases (DZNE) and Eisai Co., Ltd. announced that both parties have entered into a research collaboration agreement aiming to create potential novel treatments for neurodegenerative disorders including Alzheimer’s disease (AD) which modulate immune competence in neurons and glia cells.
News • Rescuing brain cell activity
Alzheimer's: Promising avenue to restore cognitive function
A team of neuroscientists has identified a potential means to address the loss of cognitive function due to Alzheimer’s disease by targeting protein synthesis in mice. Their findings, reported in the journal Science Signaling, reveal that synthetic pharmaceuticals could rescue the activity of brain cells needed for memory formation.
