Author Archive
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Feb 08, 2010
No CommentsMarijuana ineffective as an Alzheimer’s treatment
The benefits of marijuana in tempering or reversing the effects of Alzheimer's disease have been challenged in a newly released study by scientists at the University of British Columbia and Vancouver Coastal Health Research Institute. The findings, reported in the current issue of the journal Current Alzheimer Research, could lower expectations about the benefits of...
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Feb 03, 2010
No CommentsThree Brain Diseases Linked to Same Neural Protein
For the first time, scientists from the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have observed that three different degenerative brain disorders are linked by a toxic form of the same protein. The protein, called Elk-1, was found in clumps of misshaped proteins that are the hallmarks of Parkinson's disease, Alzheimer's disease, and Huntington's disease........ (Source:...
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Feb 01, 2010
No CommentsEarly detection of Alzheimer’s disease
Investigators from the International Center for Biomedicine and the University of Chile, in collaboration with the Center for Bioinformatics of the Universidad de Talca, have discovered that two drugs, the benzimidazole derivatives lanzoprazole and astemizole, appears to be suitable for use as PET (positron emission tomography) radiotracers and enable imaging for the early detection of...
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Jan 19, 2010
No CommentsStaring, sleepiness, other mental lapses
Cognitive fluctuations, or episodes when train of thought temporarily is lost, are more likely to occur in older persons who are in the process of developing Alzheimer's disease than in their healthy peers, as per researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. Cognitive fluctuations include excessive daytime sleepiness, staring into space and...
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Jan 14, 2010
No CommentsEye test could detect Alzheimer’s
A simple and inexpensive eye test could aid detection and diagnosis of major neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's at an earlier stage than is currently possible, as per new research by UCL scientists. The research, led by Professors Francesca Cordeiro and Stephen Moss and published recently in Cell Death and Disease, demonstrates a new technique...
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Dec 30, 2009
No CommentsGinkgo biloba may not work
Elderly adults who used the herbal supplement Ginkgo biloba for several years did not have a slower rate of cognitive decline in comparison to adults who received placebo, as per a research studyin the December 23/30 issue of JAMA "Ginkgo biloba is marketed widely and used with the hope of improving, preventing, or delaying cognitive...
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Nov 17, 2009
No CommentsStructural brain changes in Alzheimer’s disease
In a study that promises to improve diagnosis and monitoring of Alzheimer's disease, researchers at the University of California, San Diego have developed a fast and accurate method for quantifying subtle, sub-regional brain volume loss using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The study will be published the week of November 16 in the Proceedings of the...
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Nov 16, 2009
No CommentsPotential treatment for Huntington’s disease
Investigators at Burnham Institute for Medical Research (Burnham), the University of British Columbia's Centre for Molecular Medicine and Therapeutics and the University of California, San Diego have observed that normal synaptic activity in nerve cells (the electrical activity in the brain that allows nerve cells to communicate with one another) protects the brain from the...
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Nov 10, 2009
No CommentsNot enough amyloid beta protein?
While too much amyloid beta protein in the brain is associated with the development of Alzheimer's disease, not enough of the protein in healthy brains can cause learning problems and forgetfulness, Saint Louis University researchers have found. The finding could lead to better medications to treat Alzheimer's disease, said John Morley, M.D., director of the...
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Oct 22, 2009
No CommentsLooking into eyes to find Alzheimer’s
The eyes appears to be the windows to the soul, but new research indicates they also may mirror a brain ravaged by Alzheimer's disease. UC Irvine neuroresearchers have observed that retinas in mice genetically altered to have Alzheimer's undergo changes similar to those that occur in the brain - most notably the accumulation of amyloid...
