Category: Alzheimer’s Disease

A few years ago, researchers identified abnormal clumps of tau proteins in the brain as being associated with Alzheimer’s disease. Since then, efforts have been focused on eradicating these toxic tangles, which have become a hallmark of the degenerative disease. Recently, researchers from the University of Texas Medical Branch (UTMB) have developed a breakthrough nasal spray containing antibodies that selectively target and clear away tau tangles, helping to restore cognitive function.

“This nasal spray approach opens new avenues for non-invasive delivery of tau therapeutic antibodies directly to the brain, and it holds promise for many neurodegenerative diseases,” said Dr. Rakez Kayed, professor at the Department of Neurology at UTMB and the study’s corresponding author. “Our research highlights the potential of nasal tau immunotherapy to effectively target intracellular tau aggregates – a primary driver of neurodegeneration and cognitive decline in diseases like Alzheimer’s and other tauopathies.”

Continue reading… “Breakthrough Nasal Spray Targets Alzheimer’s Disease”

Chinese scientists have unveiled a groundbreaking discovery regarding the goji berry, a fruit traditionally revered in Chinese culture for its health benefits. Commonly known as the ‘wolfberry,’ this vibrant orange-red fruit is making waves beyond its culinary and medicinal roots due to its potential role in the fight against Alzheimer’s disease.

The study, led by a team at the Institute of Biophysics under the esteemed Chinese Academy of Sciences, investigated the neuroprotective properties of goji berry extract. Using the well-established biological model, C. elegans, the researchers explored how the extract could impact the notorious amyloid-beta protein, a significant contributor to Alzheimer’s disease.

Continue reading… “Goji Berry Unveils Potential Against Alzheimer’s: A Groundbreaking Study”

Alzheimer’s disease, a devastating neurodegenerative condition afflicting millions worldwide, has long eluded effective treatment options. Characterized by the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain, these plaques have been implicated in the disease’s hallmark symptoms. Despite years of research, drugs aimed at reducing plaque buildup have shown mixed results in clinical trials. However, a recent study led by researchers at Yale University may have uncovered a new biomarker and a potential therapeutic target that could change the course of Alzheimer’s disease. These groundbreaking findings were published in the journal Nature.

The research team, under the guidance of Dr. Jaime Grutzendler, the Dr. Harry M. Zimmerman and Dr. Nicholas and Viola Spinelli Professor of Neurology and Neuroscience at the Yale School of Medicine, has introduced a novel perspective. Their study suggests that it is not the amyloid plaques themselves but rather the swelling caused by a byproduct of these plaques that underlies the debilitating symptoms of Alzheimer’s.

Continue reading… “Promising Breakthrough: New Biomarker Unveiled as Potential Target for Alzheimer’s Disease”

Researchers from the University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson and Harvard University have utilized the power of artificial intelligence (AI) to delve deep into the human brain, mapping the molecular changes that occur in healthy neurons as Alzheimer’s disease progresses. The findings, published in Nature Communications Biology, shed light on potential drug targets and causes of the neurodegenerative disorder.

Alzheimer’s disease poses a significant challenge in the field of medicine, with its complex nature leading to irreversible symptoms such as dementia, memory loss, and personality changes. While drugs can alleviate certain symptoms, discovering a cure has remained elusive, mainly due to the unclear cause of the disease.

Continue reading… “Artificial Intelligence Unlocks Insights into Alzheimer’s Disease and Potential Treatments”

Hebrew University of Jerusalem’s Prof. Hermona Soreq, a leading researcher in the field of gene expression in the brain, has made a significant breakthrough in the study of Alzheimer’s disease. The research explains why women experience more severe and faster dementia than men. It has long been known that women with Alzheimer’s disease suffer from accelerated dementia and the loss of cholinergic neurons compared to males. However, until now, the causes of this discrepancy have remained unknown. In a recently published article titled “Sex-specific declines in cholinergic-targeting tRNA fragments in the nucleus” in the Alzheimer’s & Dementia journal, Soreq and her colleagues at the Edmond & Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences discovered a molecular mechanism that takes place in the brain of female Alzheimer’s patients.

The team discovered that a family of tiny RNA fragments has a direct relationship with the rate of disease development in women. The researchers found that the reservoir of the brain’s fragments in the brain reflects a rapid development of cognitive impairment among women with Alzheimer’s, but it is not reflected in the brain structure of women. The study showed that the decline in the reservoir of RNA fragments in the brain leads to a speedup in the development of cognitive decline in females.

Continue reading… “Mind in Peril: The Astonishing Truth Behind Women’s Swift Decline in Alzheimer’s”

Hyperbaric chambers have been posited as a means of solving one of medicine’s great challenges.

By Tim Kiek

Therapy mimics state of ‘hypoxia’ and is similar to that employed by deep-sea divers.

Alzheimer’s disease can be effectively treated by giving oxygen to patients in pressurised chambers, a study from Tel Aviv University suggests.

Over the course of three months, for 90 minutes a day, five days a week, six elderly patients exhibiting the early signs of dementia were administered oxygen in a hyperbaric chamber.

Researchers said the results showed blood flow increased to the triallists’ brains from 16 per cent to 23 per cent and all demonstrated significantly improved brain function.

Memory test scores increased by 16.5 per cent, attention by six per cent, and information processing speeds by 10.3 per cent.

The chamber works by mimicking the state of oxygen shortage or ‘hypoxia’, effectively changing the structure of vessels in the brain. This means that when those in the chamber are fed oxygen, their tissue absorbs it at a faster rate and in a greater volume.

Continue reading… “Alzheimer’s can be ‘stalled or reversed’ using oxygen”

An international research team led by scientists from the Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (HKUST) has developed a novel strategy using brain-wide genome-editing technology that can reduce Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathologies in genetically modified AD mouse models. This advanced technology offers immense potential to be translated as a novel long-acting therapeutic treatment for AD patients.

In China alone, over 500,000 patients are estimated to be living with a hereditary form of AD — familial Alzheimer’s disease (FAD), which is a congenital form of AD highly associated with family history. Although FAD has a clear genetic cause and can be diagnosed before cognitive problems occur, no effective treatment currently exists.

There is enormous potential in the use of genome-editing technology* as therapeutic strategies for diseases caused by inherited mutations, such as FAD. It is especially useful for correcting disease-causing genetic mutations before symptoms appear, for which it is considered a “once-and-for-all” treatment as its effects can last a lifetime. However, several hurdles have prevented its clinical development and application — most notably the lack of an effective, efficient, and non-invasive means to deliver genome-editing agents into the brain. Furthermore, existing genome-editing technologies are unable to generate beneficial outcomes throughout the whole brain.

Continue reading… “Genome-editing strategy developed for potential Alzheimer’s therapy”