Alzheimer’s disease
Cardiff dementia researcher supported by Alzheimer’s Research UK
Research into a crucial protein linked to the development of Alzheimer’s has been supported by a £76,000 grant from South Wales Freemasons. The grant is funding an Alzheimer’s Research UK PhD student, Aurora Veteleanu, at the UK Dementia Research Institute at Cardiff University. Scientists know that small changes to a gene that provides the instructions…
Genetic evidence for the role of antioxidants in Alzheimer’s disease
New research published today (Wednesday 16 September) in the journal Neurology suggests genetic evidence for the role of the antioxidant, glutathione. What did the researchers investigate? The researchers looked at information collected from 486 people who are part of the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) – a long-running dementia study. They looked at the genetic…
Female chromosomes may protect against Alzheimer’s
Researchers in the US have found that having a second X chromosome may increase resilience to Alzheimer’s disease. The findings are published today (Wednesday 26 August) in the journal Science and Translational Medicine. Our genes are wound up into structures called chromosomes. Humans have 23 pairs of chromosomes. Twenty-two of these pairs look the same in…
‘Morning people’ linked with higher Alzheimer’s risk
Researchers in the UK have linked sleeping patterns with an increased risk of dementia in people with a higher genetic risk of the condition. The scientific journal Neurology published the findings today (Wednesday 19 August). The study was supported by the UK Dementia Research Institute, the country’s largest dementia research initiative, which is partly funded…
‘Complicated, costly and slow’ dementia trials are delaying future treatments, Alzheimer’s Research UK warns
Alzheimer’s Research UK has called on government to use the investment promised for a ‘Dementia Moonshot’ to transform the way the UK carries out clinical trials for dementia, in an effort to find life-changing treatments sooner. A new report, from the Schaeffer Center for Health Policy & Economics and Gates Ventures, has found that current…
Regulators approve accelerated review for Alzheimer’s drug
Today (Friday 7 August) the US drug regulator (FDA) announced that the potential Alzheimer’s drug, aducanumab, has been accepted for a priority review process. What is aducanumab? Aducanumab is an antibody designed to target amyloid, a protein that builds up in the brains of people with Alzheimer’s at an early stage in the disease process.…
Education may help protect brain even in genetic Alzheimer’s
Researchers in Canada have found that more years of education is linked with a reduced build-up of the hallmark protein, amyloid, in the brains of people with faulty genes that cause Alzheimer’s. The scientific journal Neurology published the findings today (Wednesday 5 August). What did the researchers look at? Researchers looked at a group of…
Progressing towards a tau blood test for Alzheimer’s disease
Four new studies presented at the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference (AAIC) and two published papers show that levels of tau, a hallmark protein of Alzheimer’s disease, in the blood could be used to detect the disease The research focuses on a specific form of tau, p-tau217 The new data suggests blood levels of p-tau217 can predict the development…
Infections increase risk of death and vaccines show significant benefit for dementia
Results suggest seasonal flu vaccine reduces Alzheimer’s disease risk Pneumonia vaccine also linked with reduced risk of Alzheimer’s Dementia and infection when admitted to hospital increases likelihood of death Research presented at the 2020 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference indicates that people with dementia are at increased risk of death from infection, while vaccinating against flu…
Study identifies 10 risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease
Scientists led by a team in China have identified 10 risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease. The 10 factors are diabetes, poor BMI, reduced education, high blood pressure in midlife, low blood pressure, head trauma, high levels of homocysteine, less cognitive activity, stress, and depression. Researchers published the findings today (Monday 20 July) in the Journal…
