Researchers Find Gene Variant For Alzheimer's That May Lead To Better Treatment

New York, NY (AHN) - Researchers say they've discovered a gene that may make it easier for people for developing late-onset Alzheimer's disease and could become a target for drug treatments.

Called calcium homeostasis modulator 1 (CALHM1), the gene controls the flow of calcium in and out of cells, influences the formation of "plaques" composed of clumps of a protein, beta-amyloid, which is believed to damage brain cells in the disease.

The gene is predominantly active in a region of the brain that is hit early in the disease, where it acts as a channel for calcium, researchers say in a new report in the June 27th issue of the journal Cell.

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New clue to Alzheimer's and related dementias found

The brains of people with the memory-robbing form of dementia are cluttered with a plaque made up of beta-amyloid, a sticky protein. But there long has been a question whether this is a cause of the disease or a side effect. Also involved are tangles of a protein called tau; some scientists suspect this is the cause.

Now, researchers have caused Alzheimer's and dementia symptoms in rats by injecting them with one particular form of beta-amyloid. Injections with other forms of beta-amyloid did not cause illness, which may explain why some people have beta-amyloid plaque in their brains but do not show disease symptoms.

The two-molecule form of soluble beta-amyloid produced characteristics of Alzheimer's and dementia in the rats.

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You can also read about this at

Nature Medicine
or at
National Institute on Aging

Dementia can hit after a stroke in prime of life

In November 2005, Davida Godett seemingly had it all. She had a great job and was on the fast track to earning her MBA. Then, on an otherwise uneventful Monday morning, Godett crashed:

She had a mini-stroke that temporarily stopped the blood flow to her brain. Godett went to a nearby emergency room and recovered. She didn't really dwell on the fact that she was at high risk for another attack. After all, she reasoned, strokes strike older people, and she was only 29. Then, right around Valentine's Day 2007, Godett started to slur her words. One side of her body felt numb. She had had a severe stroke. This time, when Godett, an accountant in Philadelphia, tried to resume her life, she ran into major problems. At work, she had trouble adding up numbers, planning ahead or even thinking clearly.FIND MORE STORIES IN: Philadelphia Medicare Alzheimer Valentine Morgantown Stroke Association

BETTER LIFE: Rounding up the latest studies on Alzheimer's and dementia

The damage from the stroke had left her with vascular dementia, the second-leading cause of dementia in the USA behind Alzheimer's. Godett was only 31 at the time. Most people who have dementia are 65 or older, but according to the Alzheimer's Association, an estimated 500,000 people ages 55 to 64 struggle with some form of dementia. Work becomes impossible

Here are somw ways to prevent dementia

VASCULAR DEMENTIA PREVENTION
African-Americans have a greater chance of suffering a stroke and developing vascular dementia, but it can happen to anyone. To reduce the risk: Keep blood pressure in check. Don't let untreated high blood pressure damage artery walls. Maintain a normal body weight. Obesity can increase the risk of diabetes, stroke and other vascular problems. Don't smoke. Cut back on foods high in saturated fat and add plenty of whole grains and fresh fruits and vegetables to your plate. Get plenty of exercise. Thirty minutes of activity on most days of the week is ideal. Take steps to reduce high blood cholesterol.

Sources: The American Heart Association and the

Alzheimer's Association

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New promising findings in Alzheimers research

By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID

WASHINGTON (AP) — Researchers have uncovered a new clue to the cause of Alzheimer's disease. The brains of people with the memory-robbing form of dementia are cluttered with a plaque made up of beta-amyloid, a sticky protein. But there long has been a question whether this is a cause of the disease or a side effect. Also involved are tangles of a protein called tau; some scientists suspect this is the cause.

Now, researchers have caused Alzheimer's symptoms in rats by injecting them with one particular form of beta-amyloid. Injections with other forms of beta-amyloid did not cause illness, which may explain why some people have beta-amyloid plaque in their brains but do not show disease symptoms.

The findings by a team led by Dr. Ganesh M. Shankar and Dr. Dennis J. Selkoe of Harvard Medical School were reported in Sunday's online edition of the journal Nature Medicine.

The researchers used extracts from the brains of people who donated their bodies to medicine.

A lot of work needs to be done," Morrison-Bogorad said. "Nature keeps sending us down paths that look straight at the beginning, but there are a lot of curves before we get to the end."
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The Alzheimer's Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center Web site will help you find current, comprehensive Alzheimer's disease (AD) information and resources from the National Institute on Aging (NIA

Did you have a happy Father's day?

This is a special day for people with Alzheimer's disease and caregivers who are also fathers. I hope you had a relaxing, peaceful day spent with family and friends where love is the prevailing theme.
If you're caring for a father with Alzheimer's, this could be an emotionally challenging day for you. I hope found an event or activity that you both enjoy and that's adaptable to your father's current abilities. If you're a caregiver and you're
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Why laughter is so important for those with dementia

Laughter, the physical response to perceived humor, Those with dementia can still perceive humor. Laughter has demonstrated positive effects on physical and psychological well-being.Dementia folks have improved well being from laughter. Thus if someone with dementia thinks something is funny, he will laugh. What helps is to have a group leader or care giver start laughing about something and invite the dementia person(s) to join in. Often you will find that laughter is contageous. Studies that focus on effects of humor on health and well-being of older adults are scarce.

Laughter therapy is in for those with dementia

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Are Humor and Word-Play Lost Skillls for Those with Alzheimer's?

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Have you heard of laughter clubs ?

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You can make a difference in Alzheimer's research

Alzheimer Research Funding - Subcommittee Action
Your voice can make a difference.

Advocacy is a major component of the Alzheimer's Association mission. Advocates are people with Alzheimer's and related disorders, caregivers, friends and families whose voices together are a powerful tool for change and hope of a future without Alzheimer's.

Alzheimer advocates are calling for advancements in research and enhanced care and support at the federal, state and local levels. The payoff has been phenomenal to date: substantial increases in federal research funding, growth in state-supported services and improvements in the quality of care for those in nursing homes.
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Study: Memory Problems(Dementia) More Prevalent in Men than in Women

When it comes to remembering things, men are more predisposed than women to become dotty and forgetful(possible pre-dementia), new research, presented at the American Academy of Neurology 60th Anniversary Annual Meeting in Chicago, April 16, suggests.


“This is one of the first studies to determine the prevalence of mild cognitive impairment among men and women who have been randomly selected from a community to participate in the study,” Dr. Rosebud Roberts of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota said, according to the Telegraph.


For the study, Dr. Roberts and his colleagues followed 2,050 people living in Olmsted County, Minnesota, who were between the ages of 70 and 89. They were interviewed, examined and given cognitive tests every 12 to 15 months.


Overall, 74 percent of
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Well men what do you think?

Developments in Alzheimer's Disease

There's yet more AD-related research out today, this time in Neuron2, and that work expands our understanding of why apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is involved in the Alzheimer's disease. ApoE is a component of LDL and VLDL, the types of cholesterol-containing lipoproteins that cause heart disease. But research has also shown that people who carry one of the ApoE polymorphisms, ApoE4, have a greatly increased risk for developing AD later in life. As with cholesterol, where ApoE is involved in clearance of the LDL and VLDL particles, ApoE also binds to Aβ and aids its removal by specialized cells in the brain called microglia.

In this study, microglia from ApoE knockout mice were incubated with Aβ, which they were unable to degrade nearly as effectively as microglia from wild-type mice. When the experiment was repeated along with the addition of different isoforms of human ApoE, it was discovered that ApoE2, and -E3 all conferred back the ability to degrade Aβ, but ApoE4 was significantly less effective. The researchers also showed that the lipidation state of ApoE (how many lipids were bound to the molecule) was important in how effective the degradation of Aβ was, with greater lipidation resulting in greater degradation. Since we have drugs that can increase this lipidation state, it suggests another possible drug target for treating AD.

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Bright Light Improves Dementia Symptoms

Study Shows Brighter Daytime Lighting Brings Improvement in Mood, Behavior
By Kelli Miller Stacy
WebMD Health NewsReviewed by Louise Chang, MD

Turning up the lights during the daytime may boost mood and improve behavior in elderly adults with dementia, according to a new study.

Mood swings, sleep problems, and behavioral issues frequently affect those with dementia-related cognitive decline. Such disturbances can increase the person's risk of being admitted to an assisted living facility, according to background information in the journal article

Their study is published in the June 11 issue of The Journal of the American Medical Association.

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read what bloomberg.com had to say

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Prevention methods for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias

dementia prevention. There is much that is unknown about Alzheimer's disease and other dementias, including the cause or causes and how to slow or stop its progress. Because of this, Alzheimer's disease and related dementias are difficult to prevent.

There is some evidence that indicates that people who sustain severe head injuries are more likely to develop Alzheimer's disease later in life. For this reason, it is important to always wear a seatbelt while traveling in a car and to wear protective headgear while operating a motorcycle or bicycle, or while playing contact sports.

Other studies have shown that oxidative stress, the process of cell damage by free radicals, contributes to the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. Oxidative stress can be prevented by consuming foods that are high in antioxidants, such as olive oil, fish and fresh fruit and vegetables. It can also be prevented by taking supplements of vitamin A, C and E, although a physician should always be consulted before starting any supplements

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Successful Communication Tips for Dementia

As dementia progresses, it becomes more difficult for individuals to express their thoughts and feelings, as well as to understand what is being communicated to them. In order to enhance communication with your loved one, try the following tips:

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Staving off dementia in older women

It has been difficult to make a solid connection between social separation, dementia, and cognitive function. Women, in particular, become socially isolated as they age.

This study shows that women who are more socially active display less dementia

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Exercise May Cut Risk of Dementia

A Study Shows Physical Activity in Middle Age Has Brain Benefits Years in the Future

WebMD Health News Exercising in middle age may help ward off dementia and Alzheimer's disease decades later.

In a study of more than 1,400 adults, those who were physically active in their free time during middle age were 52% less likely to develop dementia 21 years later than their sedentary counterparts. Their chance of developing Alzheimer's disease was slashed even more, by 62%.

These patterns were even stronger in people with the ApoE e4 gene, which is associated with higher risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

"By being physically active in midlife, people who carry the ApoE e4 gene can lower their risk of Alzheimer's to the same level as someone not carrying the gene," says researcher Suvi Rovio, MSc, of the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, Sweden

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'Neurobics' and Other Brain Boosters

Every day, it seems, a new study reports that caffeine -- or fish oil or friendships -- lowers the risk of Alzheimer's disease.

Many of these are "associations" that may or may not have a cause-and-effect relationship. There is still much that isn't known about the telltale plaques and tangles that slowly strangle the brains of Alzheimer's victims.

But what scientists do know now that they didn't just a decade ago is that people generate new brain cells, and new connections between them, throughout life. And the more mental reserves people build up, experts believe, the better they can stave off age-related cognitive decline

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Test Yourself: What You Don't Know About Alzheimer's and Dementia Can Hurt

Misconceptions about these aspects of Alzheimer's disease are widespread among the public, caregivers, and patients themselves, according to Australian psychologist Karen Sullivan of Queensland University of Technology, who studies community awareness. Her research appears in an upcoming issue of the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry. Zeroing in on what people don't know, she says, helps frame the most useful education programs.

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News Early detection may cut dementia costs

Clinicians should focus on the early detection and treatment of dementia to lessen the future burden of the disease according to a King's Fund report.
Its year long study into the mental health needs of England over the next 20 years found the incidence of dementia is likely to increase by two-thirds (61 per cent) due to a rapidly ageing population. All other mental health disorders are likely to remain stable
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Another reporting of Alzheimer's and dementia brain plaques cleared in mice

Protein accumulations, or plaques, characteristic of Alzheimer's disease can be eliminated from the brains of mice, researchers report, by encouraging scavenger immune cells called macrophages to do their work.
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Treating Chronic Infections May Block Alzheimer's and dementia

Treating Chronic Infections May Block Alzheimer's and dementia


Amsterdam – Researchers are breaking new ground in the emerging role of infection in the development of Alzheimer's.

A number of chronic diseases are in fact caused by one or more infectious agents. For example, stomach ulcers are caused by Helicobacter pylori, chronic lung disease in newborns and chronic asthma in adults are both caused by Mycoplasmas and Chlamydia pneumonia, while some other pathogens have been associated with atherosclerosis. The realization that pathogens can produce slowly progressive chronic diseases has opened new lines of research into Alzheimer’s disease.

In a special issue of the Journal of Alzheimer’s Disease published May 2008, guest editors Judith Miklossy, from The University of British Columbia, and Ralph N. Martins, from Edith Cowan University and Hollywood Private Hospital, Perth, Western Australia, and a group of experts explore this exciting topic. Alzheimer’s disease (AD), the most frequent cause of dementia, is a form of amyloidosis. It has been known for a century that dementia, brain atrophy and amyloidosis can be caused by chronic bacterial infections, namely by Treponema pallidum in the atrophic form of general paresis in syphilis. Bacteria and viruses are powerful stimulators of inflammation. It was suggested by Alois Alzheimer and his colleagues a century ago that microorganisms may be contributors in the generation of senile plaques in AD.

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