Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Latest Alzheimer's & Dementia News and Research

Midlife and early senior years marked by dramatic molecular shifts

If it's ever felt like everything in your body is breaking down at once, that might not be your imagination. A new Stanford Medicine study shows that many of our molecules and microorganisms dramatically rise or fall in number during our 40s and 60s.

14 Aug 2024

Study highlights predictors of cognitive decline in early Alzheimer's disease

Older age, female sex, irregular heart rhythms, and daily activity levels can help to predict how much Alzheimer's Disease patients' cognitive function will decline, and how much they will depend on their caregivers over the next two years.

14 Aug 2024

Menopause linked to increased risk of cognitive issues

With more than 24 million people globally living with dementia without a cure in sight, there is a lot of focus on ways to prevent and delay cognitive impairment. A new study suggests that severe menopause symptoms such as hot flashes and depression can negatively affect cognitive function in postmenopausal women. Results of the study are published online today in Menopause, the journal of The Menopause Society.

14 Aug 2024

Australia leads life expectancy among English-speaking nations

Australians outlive their peers in five other high-income English-speaking countries by 1 to 4 years, with most of this advantage seen between ages 45 and 84. Lower death rates from drug and alcohol misuse, treatable cancers, and cardiovascular diseases are key factors.

13 Aug 2024

Decline in psychological wellbeing may signal early mild cognitive impairment

Feeling that your life lacks purpose and that there are few opportunities for personal growth in older age may precede the development of mild cognitive impairment (MCI), a frequent precursor of dementia, suggests research published online in the Journal of Neurology Neurosurgery & Psychiatry.

13 Aug 2024

New research identifies key protein complex in cellular quality control

Anyone who's tried to neatly gather a fitted sheet can tell you: folding is hard. Get it wrong with your laundry and the result can be a crumpled, wrinkled mess of fabric, but when folding fails among the approximately 7,000 proteins with an origami-like complexity that regulate essential cellular functions, the result can lead to one of a multitude of serious diseases ranging from emphysema and cystic fibrosis to Alzheimer's disease.

12 Aug 2024

Beyond neurons: Glial cells identified as key players in Alzheimer's disease

Memory loss, confusion, speech problems – Alzheimer's disease is the most common cause of dementia, affecting about 35 million people worldwide, and the number is growing.

12 Aug 2024

Emory researchers offer a new perspective on the mechanism behind Alzheimer's disease

New findings out of Emory University are challenging existing theories about the origins of Alzheimer's, the leading cause of dementia in the elderly worldwide.

12 Aug 2024

New histone tag discovery offers hope for myelin repair in neurodegenerative diseases

In a groundbreaking study, researchers with the Advanced Science Research Center at the CUNY Graduate Center (CUNY ASRC) have identified a distinct histone tag in adult oligodendrocyte progenitor cells (OPCs) that may pave the way for innovative therapies targeting myelin repair, a critical target for several neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders, including multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's disease, and schizophrenia.

12 Aug 2024

New drug GSM-15606 may guard against Alzheimer's risk from air pollution

A new study led by the USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology shows how feeding mice a drug called GSM-15606 provided protection against air pollution-related increases in proteins linked to Alzheimer's disease.

12 Aug 2024

Study reveals high undiagnosed rates of mild cognitive impairment in rural West Michigan

Corewell Health™ and Michigan State University researchers are the first in the state to use de-identified electronic health records of more than 1.5 million patients to analyze incidence rates and risk factors of mild cognitive impairment, or MCI, in rural and urban areas in West Michigan.

12 Aug 2024

Type 2 diabetes hinders beta-amyloid clearance and may elevate Alzheimer's risk

People with type 2 diabetes are at increased risk of Alzheimer's disease and other adverse cognitive health issues.

12 Aug 2024

New study links brain cell structures to memory loss in aging and dementia

Researchers assessed whether dendritic spine head diameter in the temporal cortex is a better predictor of episodic memory performance in older adults than synapse quantity, accounting for β amyloid plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, and sex.

12 Aug 2024

New proteomic clock predicts biological age and major health risks across diverse populations

Study developed a proteomic age clock using plasma proteins to accurately predict biological age and associated health risks, offering a robust tool for forecasting age-related diseases and mortality.

11 Aug 2024

Enzyme blockade improves memory updating in older mice

Everyone has moments of forgetfulness from time to time, especially as we get older. But older adults don't just have difficulty remembering new information.

9 Aug 2024

Violent dementia patients leave nursing home staffers and residents ‘scared to death’

Dan Shively had been a bank president who built floats for July Fourth parades in Cody, Wyoming, and adored fly-fishing with his sons.

9 Aug 2024

NIH awards $3.5M grant to study link between traumatic brain injury and Alzheimer's

A traumatic brain injury, or TBI, is caused by a contusion to the head that may result in injury to the brain.

8 Aug 2024

Alcohol use disorders in parents linked to accelerated aging in children

Researchers at the Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (VMBS) have discovered that parents who struggle with alcohol use disorders can pass along symptoms of early aging to their children, affecting them well into adulthood.

8 Aug 2024

New technique reveals abnormalities in motor neurone disease

Pathological abnormalities associated with motor neurone disease have been identified using a new technique developed at the University of Birmingham.

8 Aug 2024

Breakthrough molecule reverses Alzheimer's symptoms

In a new study, a molecule identified and synthesized by UCLA Health researchers was shown to restore cognitive functions in mice with symptoms of Alzheimer's disease by effectively jumpstarting the brain's memory circuitry.

8 Aug 2024