In a discovery the researchers describe as “unprecedented,” a cancer drug (bexarotene) already approved by the FDA has been shown to quickly reverse the pathological, cognitive and memory deficits caused by the onset of Alzheimer’s disease. Although only demonstrated in mice, the researchers believe the findings are compelling enough to warrant a speedy transition to […]
Tag Archives | alzheimers
Alzheimer’s may be transmissible a la mad cow disease
Alzheimer’s disease may originate in a form similar to that of infectious prion diseases such as Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease; suggests new research published in Molecular Psychiatry that shows an infectious spreading of Alzheimer’s disease in animal models. Alzheimer’s disease is a form of progressive dementia that affects memory, thinking and behavior. The plaques caused by misshapen […]
Alzheimer’s risk gene begins disrupting brain 50 years before disease hits
Degeneration of myelin in the brain’s white-matter fiber pathways is increasingly considered to be a key component of Alzheimer’s disease and researchers now say that the process begins when we are young and that nearly 90 percent of Caucasians are vulnerable. The risk gene to blame is called clusterin (CLU) and it begins to damage […]
Liver, not brain, may originate Alzheimer’s
Unexpected findings from a Scripps Research Institute study could completely alter prevailing notions about Alzheimer’s disease – pointing to the liver instead of the brain as the original source of the plaques that cause the disease. The findings, appearing in The Journal of Neuroscience Research, could point the way to a relatively simple approach for […]
Report reveals enormous global cost of Alzheimer’s
Already costing 1 percent of global GDP and growing rapidly, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias are the single most significant health and social crisis of the 21st century, warns a new multinational report. “This is a wake-up call,” said Dr Daisy Acosta, Chairman of Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI, the non-profit international federation of 73 Alzheimer […]
Alzheimer’s breakthrough: A chemical to make brain cells grow
“It was blind luck,” say the researchers from the University of Texas Southwestern (UTS) who discovered a chemical that makes new neurons grow in the part of the brain that is integral to learning and memory. The discovery, made after researchers systematically and painstakingly infused each of 1,000 different chemicals into the brains of live […]
Cell phones reverse Alzheimer’s in mice
A startling new study in mice provides the first evidence that long-term exposure to the electromagnetic emissions from cell phone use may actually protect against – and even reverse – Alzheimer’s disease. The study, led by University of South Florida researchers at the Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, was published yesterday in the Journal of […]
High protein diets shrink brain
Reported in the journal Molecular Neurodegeneration, a study by Alzheimer’s researchers has found that a high protein diet, such as the Atkins diet, can lead to a smaller brain. The researchers, from the US, Canada, and the UK, tested four different menus on mice that had been transgenically altered to provide a model of Alzheimer’s […]
Extreme Diet Nixes Alzheimer’s
Scheduled for publication in the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease, a study by Mount Sinai School of Medicine researchers extends and strengthens the hypothesis that dietary regimens involving caloric restriction might halt, or even reverse, Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers, working with Squirrel Monkeys, speculate that restricting caloric intake may prevent Alzheimer’s by triggering activity in the […]
Veggie Juice Reduces Risk Of Vegetative State
The September issue of The American Journal of Medicine reports that a specific class of antioxidant found in fruit and vegetable juice could stave off Alzheimer’s disease. The Vanderbilt University study suggests that juices are especially effective for people genetically predisposed to the disease. An investigation into Alzheimer’s disease in older Japanese populations living in […]