Tag Archives: alzheimer’s disease

Human Cognition Depends Upon Slow-Firing Neurons

By Guest PostFebruary 26, 2013Sciencealzheimer's disease, amy arnsten, any sensory stimulation, brain circuits, clear thinking, cognitive deficits, dementia, disease, Environment, firing of neurons, glutamate signaling regulate, good mental health, hallmark, human cognition, john krystal, mathematical models, medicine, mental sketch pad, min wang, molecular basis, nao j gamo, neuronal firing, new york university, nmda nr2b receptors, prefrontal cortex, receptors, schizophrenia, street drug, types of nmda, xiao jing wang, yale neurobiologist, yale school, yang yang

Good mental health and clear thinking depend upon our ability to store and manipulate thoughts on a sort of “mental sketch pad.” In a new study, Yale School of Medicine researchers describe the molecular basis of this ability — the hallmark of human cognition — and describe how a breakdown of the system contributes to diseases such as schizophrenia and Alzheimer’s disease.

“Insults to these highly evolved cortical circuits impair the ability to create and maintain our mental representations of the world, which is the basis of higher cognition,” said Amy Arnsten, professor of neurobiology and senior author of the paper published in the Feb. 20 issue of the journal Neuron. (more…)

Right Target, but Missing the Bulls-Eye for Alzheimer’s

By Guest PostFebruary 3, 2013Health, Scienceabeta, abeta40, abeta42, abeta42 protein, aleksey lomakin, alzheimer's disease, america, amino acids, amyloid beta, atul deshpande, brain, bulls eye, causes of death, chemical synthesis, computer simulations, david teplow, destroy neurons, disorder, george b benedek, gregory cole, hairpin like structure, late life dementia, mingfeng yang, molecular biology, mutant abeta peptides, pearl necklace, plaques, protein, robin roychaudhuri, sally frautschy, sequence, toxic actions, toxic form, ucla

UCLA researchers discover new point of attack for drug therapy

Alzheimer’s disease is the most common cause of late-life dementia. The disorder is thought to be caused by a protein known as amyloid-beta, or Abeta, which clumps together in the brain, forming plaques that are thought to destroy neurons. This destruction starts early, too, and can presage clinical signs of the disease by up to 20 years.

For decades now, researchers have been trying, with limited success, to develop drugs that prevent this clumping. Such drugs require a “target” — a structure they can bind to, thereby preventing the toxic actions of Abeta. (more…)

UCLA Study First to Image Concussion-Related Abnormal Brain Proteins in Retired NFL Players

By Guest PostJanuary 24, 2013Healthabnormal gait, abnormal tau proteins, alzheimer's disease, american journal, amyloid beta plaques, athletes, autopsy, body mass index, brain imaging tool, brain injury, brain pathology, centers, chemical marker, chronic traumatic encephalopathy, clinical assessment, cognitive, cognitive ability, confusion, cte, degenerative condition, degree of depression, dementia, depression, disease control, early detection, early symptoms, family history, fddnp, fran, gary small, gauge, geriatric psychiatry, hallmarks of alzheimers, ham d, hamilton rating scale, intravenous injections, jorge r barrio, julian bailes, linda m ercoli, memory loss, mental state examination, mild, mini, mmse, mood symptoms, national football league, neurofibrillary tau tangles, personality changes, PET, player, positron emission tomography, prabha siddarth, prevention, progression in cte, progressive dementia, protein, ray stark foundation, repair damage, risk, sports related concussions, suicidal behavior, traumatic brain injuries, traumatic brain injury, tremors, vladimir kepe, wayne clark

Technique may lead to earlier diagnosis, tracking of brain disorders in athletes

Sports-related concussions and mild traumatic brain injuries have grabbed headlines in recent months, as the long-term damage they can cause becomes increasingly evident among both current and former athletes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention estimates that millions of these injuries occur each year.

Despite the devastating consequences of traumatic brain injury and the large number of athletes playing contact sports who are at risk, no method has been developed for early detection or tracking of the brain pathology associated with these injuries. (more…)

Experiencing Discrimination Increases Risk-Taking, Anger, and Vigilance

By Guest PostDecember 26, 2012Healthalzheimer's disease, behavior, black participants, black partners, brain aging, brain and body, cardiovascular activity, causal mechanism, cognitive decline, cross race partners, discrimination, experiencing rejection, false alarms, feedback, jeremy jamieson, katrina koslov, matthew k nock, negative statement, pattern of thoughts, physiological response, psychological factor, race and sex, risk taking behavior, san francisco, social interaction, university of california, wendy berry mendes, white partners

Experiencing rejection not only affects how we think and feel — over the long-term it can also influence our physical and mental health. New research suggests that when rejection comes in the form of discrimination, people respond with a pattern of thoughts, behaviors, and physiological responses that may contribute to overall health disparities.

“Psychological factors, like discrimination, have been suggested as part of the causal mechanisms that explain how discrimination gets ‘under the skin’ to affect health,” says psychological scientist and senior researcher Wendy Berry Mendes of the University of California, San Francisco. “We wanted to explore the behavioral consequences that follow experiences of discrimination to better understand these mechanisms.” (more…)

Omega-3 Supplements May Slow a Biological Effect of Aging

By Guest PostOctober 5, 2012Healthaging, alzheimer's disease, american, arthritis, balance, beom seuk hwang, biological process, blood, blood cell, cardiovascular system, cell, coronary, daily intake, dha, diabetes, diet, DNA, docosahexaenoic acid, eicosapentaenoic acid, elissa epel, elizabeth blackburn, epa, f2 isoprostanes, fatty acid, fish oil, free radical, good fat, heart, heart disease, il 6, immune system, inflammation, inflammatory marker, interleukin 6, jan kiecolt glaser, jue lin, martha belury, ohio state, oil, omega 6, omega-3, oxidative stress, placebo group, polyunsaturated fatty acid, ratio, rebecca andridge, reduce, ron glaser, segment, supplement, telomeres, type 2, white, william malarkey

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Taking enough omega-3 fatty acid supplements to change the balance of oils in the diet could slow a key biological process linked to aging, new research suggests.

The study showed that most overweight but healthy middle-aged and older adults who took omega-3 supplements for four months altered a ratio of their fatty acid consumption in a way that helped preserve tiny segments of DNA in their white blood cells. (more…)

UMD Study Shows Exercise May Protect Against Future Emotional Stress

By Guest PostSeptember 15, 2012Healthacute exercise, aging, alzheimer's disease, anxiety, anxiety level, brain function, carson smith, emotion research, emotional exposure, fmri, functional, iaps database, imaging, kinesiology researcher, magnetic, maryland, mental health, moderate exercise, physical activity, resonance, stress, symptom, university

COLLEGE PARK, Md. – Moderate exercise may help people cope with anxiety and stress for an extended period of time post-workout, according to a study by kinesiology researchers in the University of Maryland School of Public Health published in the journal Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise.

“While it is well-known that exercise improves mood, among other benefits, not as much is known about the potency of exercise’s impact on emotional state and whether these positive effects endure when we’re faced with everyday stressors once we leave the gym,” explains J. Carson Smith, assistant professor in the Department of Kinesiology. “We found that exercise helps to buffer the effects of emotional exposure. If you exercise, you’ll not only reduce your anxiety, but you’ll be better able to maintain that reduced anxiety when confronted with emotional events.” (more…)

Scientists Dramatically Reduce Plaque-Forming Substances in Mice with Alzheimer’s Disease

By Guest PostSeptember 8, 2012Sciencea beta peptides, ajaya kunwar, alzheimer's disease, amp kinase, ampk, amyloid beta, amyloid precursor protein, app, chemical reaction, chhavy tep, cognitive decline, compound, cycle, dong ju park, endoplasmic reticulum, enzyme, er, fat, genetic manipulation, glucose, jae cheon ryu, jnk3, metabolism, mice, mouse brain, mtor pathway, ohio state university, proteins, reduction, rna expression, sung ok yoon, symptom, tae hee lim, type 2 diabetes, yong jae shin

COLUMBUS, Ohio – Scientists have found that eliminating an enzyme from mice with symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease leads to a 90 percent reduction in the compounds responsible for formation of the plaques linked to Alzheimer’s disease.

That is the most dramatic reduction in this compound reported to date in published research.

The compounds are amyloid beta, or A-beta peptides; peptides are proteins, but are shorter in length. When A-beta peptides accumulate in excessive amounts in the brain, they can form plaques, which are a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. (more…)

Meditation Reduces Loneliness

By Guest PostAugust 15, 2012Health, Sciencealzheimer's disease, brain, chronic inflammation, crp, david creswell, depression, expression, heart disease, helen lavretsky, immune system, infection, inflammation, inflammatory gene, loneliness, mbsr, meditation, meditative technique, michael irwin, mindfulness, natural component, nf kb, pro inflammatory gene, protein marker, risk, tai chi, yoga

UCLA study also finds that mindfulness technique benefits immune system

Many elderly people spend their last years alone. Spouses pass and children scatter. But being lonely is much more than a silent house and a lack of companionship. Over time, loneliness not only takes a toll on the psyche but can have a serious physical impact as well.

Feeling lonely has been linked to an increased risk of heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, depression and even premature death. Developing effective treatments to reduce loneliness in older adults is essential, but previous treatment efforts have had limited success. (more…)