Neurodegeneration News and Research

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Neurodegeneration is the umbrella term for the progressive loss of structure or function of neurons, including death of neurons.

MIT researchers identify link between MEF2 gene and cognitive resilience in older individuals

Many people develop Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia as they get older. However, others remain sharp well into old age, even if their brains show underlying signs of neurodegeneration.

3 Nov 2021

Specific amino acid supplementation could prevent the development of dementia

Dementia- a condition involving the extreme loss of cognitive function- is caused by a variety of disorders, including Alzheimer's disease.

22 Oct 2021

Study reveals key role of fat cells in cognitive decline and neurodegeneration

Findings published this week reveal new insights into the role of fat cells in cognitive decline and neurodegeneration, according to a study that involves the oxidant amplification loop led by Marshall University scientists.

22 Oct 2021

Yale Cancer Center receives $6.5 million NIH grant for cellular senescence research

The National Institutes of Health has awarded a grant to fund cellular senescence research in lymphoid organs at Yale Cancer Center.

21 Oct 2021

Washington University receives $7.5 million to support NIH's research on senescent cells

Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis is joining the National Institutes of Health's new research network focused on the study of senescent cells, a rare and important population of cells that is difficult to study but vital for understanding aging and the diseases of aging, including cancer and neurodegeneration.

20 Oct 2021

NIH launches new program to identify and characterize the differences in senescent cells

The National Institutes of Health has launched a program to study a rare type of cells, called "senescent" cells, that play both positive and negative roles in biological processes.

20 Oct 2021

Research may provide clues to how viral infections contribute to neurodegeneration

Some viral diseases could possibly contribute to neurodegeneration. DZNE researchers report this in the scientific journal "Nature Communications".

19 Oct 2021

Personality traits associated with hallmarks of Alzheimer’s disease

New research from the Florida State University College of Medicine found that changes in the brain associated with Alzheimer's disease are often visible early on in individuals with personality traits associated with the condition.

12 Oct 2021

Study investigates the link between gray matter and white matter neurodegeneration in subjective cognitive decline

Aging-US published "The interplay between gray matter and white matter neurodegeneration in subjective cognitive decline" which reported that subjective cognitive complaints were assessed through 9 questions covering amnestic and non-amnestic cognitive domains. In these authors' cohorts, 123 individuals endorsed from one to six subjective cognitive complaints, while 102 individuals reported zero complaints.

11 Oct 2021

New technique elucidates fiber architecture of the brain's white matter

The human brain is a constant buzz of activity, with its 86 billion nerve cells (neurons) sending electrical signals from one region of the brain to another. The signals travel along the white matter fibers, a maze of wire-like fibers, ultimately giving rise to all brain functions.

7 Oct 2021

High fat diet exacerbates Alzheimer's disease in mouse model

Research has shown that individuals who have diabetes are more prone to develop dementia. Although people are widely aware of diabetes, owing to its common occurrence, they are less aware of prediabetes. Similar to diabetes, prediabetes is also associated with impaired glucose tolerance. However, unlike diabetes, patients with prediabetes show a slight increase in insulin and fasting blood glucose rather than hyperglycemia.

7 Oct 2021

UVA researchers identify 14 genes that cause obesity

Promising news in the effort to develop drugs to treat obesity: University of Virginia scientists have identified 14 genes that can cause and three that can prevent weight gain. The findings pave the way for treatments to combat a health problem that affects more than 40% of American adults.

1 Oct 2021

Early accumulation of tau proteins in the brain more effective at predicting memory impairment

Researchers at Karolinska Institutet in Sweden have compared how well different Alzheimer's biomarkers predict the progression of the disease and its effect on memory.

1 Oct 2021

Buck Institute receives $14 million NIH grant to focus on one of the major drivers of aging

Buck Institute professors Judith Campisi, PhD and Lisa Ellerby PhD, have been awarded a $14.3 million grant from the NIH's National Institute of Aging to study cellular senescence, one of the major hallmarks of aging, as a driver of Alzheimer's disease and other age-related dementias.

29 Sep 2021

Alzheimer’s drug targets people with mild cognitive impairment. What does that mean?

The approval of a controversial new drug for Alzheimer's disease, Aduhelm, is shining a spotlight on mild cognitive impairment — problems with memory, attention, language or other cognitive tasks that exceed changes expected with normal aging.

29 Sep 2021

Scientists characterize new genetic variants that cause nonsyndromic neurodevelopmental disorder

Northwestern Medicine scientists have characterized several variants of the gene GRIK2 that cause nonsyndromic neurodevelopmental disorder (NDD), according to a study published in the American Journal of Human Genetics.

23 Sep 2021

Discovery of genes opens the door to new treatments for obesity

Promising news in the effort to develop drugs to treat obesity: University of Virginia scientists have identified 14 genes that can cause and three that can prevent weight gain.

22 Sep 2021

EIT Health highlights the urgent need for harnessing data and AI to fight against Alzheimer’s disease

To coincide with World Alzheimer’s Month, EIT Health, an EU-backed network of best-in-class health innovators, has highlighted the urgent need to focus on implementing bolder approaches to the treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease post-pandemic.

20 Sep 2021

UTSW researchers discover how vitamin A enters immune cells in the intestines

Immunologists and geneticists at UT Southwestern Medical Center have discovered how vitamin A enters immune cells in the intestines – findings that could offer insight to treat digestive diseases and perhaps help improve the efficacy of some vaccines.

16 Sep 2021

Liver may play a key role in the onset or progression of Alzheimer's disease

Amyloid protein made in the liver can cause neurodegeneration in the brain, according to a new study in the open-access journal PLOS Biology, by John Mamo of Curtin University in Bentley, Australia, and colleagues.

14 Sep 2021