Decades before people with Alzheimer’s disease develop memory loss and confusion, their brains become dotted with plaques made of a sticky protein – called amyloid beta – that is thought to contribute to the disease and its progression. Currently, the only way to detect amyloid beta in the brain is via PET scanning, which is […]
In 2015, the global cost of Alzheimer’s disease was US$818 billion. That’s similar to the gross domestic product of the world’s 18th-largest economy. By 2030, the number of people with the disease is expected to rise to more than 70 million worldwide (see ‘Staying ahead’).
How well, not how much, people sleep may affect Alzheimer’s disease risk. Healthy adults built up Alzheimer’s-associated proteins in their cerebral spinal fluid when prevented from getting slow-wave sleep, the deepest stage of sleep, researchers report July 10 in Brain. Just one night of deep-sleep disruption was enough to increase the amount of amyloid-beta, a protein that […]
Americans love to drive. More than 75 percent of adults carry a driver’s license, including 40 million who are 65 and older. But driving is more than just a passion or a pastime: It’s a lifeline. Studies show that giving up driving increases a person’s mortality risk and makes seniors more likely to land in […]
Age can bring moments of forgetfulness. It can also bring concern that the forgetfulness might be a sign of early Alzheimer’s disease. For those who decide to have it checked out, doctors are likely to administer brief memory exams to assess the situation, and medical tests to search for causes of memory loss. Brain imaging […]
Damaging tangles of the protein tau dot the brains of people with Alzheimer’s and many other neurodegenerative diseases, including chronic traumatic encephalopathy, which plagues professional boxers and football players. Such tau-based diseases can lead to memory loss, confusion and, in some, aggressive behavior. But there is no easy way to determine whether people’s symptoms are linked to […]
An international leader in neurofibromatosis research has received a $3.5 million grant to study why people with the same genetic mutation – in this case, a mutation that causes the genetic disorder known as neurofibromatosis type 1 (NF1) – develop markedly different signs and symptoms.
Several Washington University School of Medicine faculty members recently were honored with Distinguished Faculty Awards for their wide-ranging achievements, dedication and talent. The recipients were nominated by their peers to recognize achievements in clinical care, community service, research and teaching. They received the awards in a ceremony Feb. 15 at the Eric P. Newman Education Center on […]
Feb. 8 (UPI) — Research from the National Institutes of Health, or NIH, suggests the potential to prevent or reverse brain damage caused by tau protein in dementia patients. The study of mice and monkeys showed that tau antisense oligonucleotides, which are genetically engineered to block a cell’s production of tau, have the potential to treat […]
In some people, the brain protein tau collects into toxic tangles that damage brain cells and contribute to diseases such as Alzheimer’s. Researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis have found a drug that can lower tau levels and prevent some neurological damage. In neurons that contain the drug (above, in red) […]