Feature Channels: Alzheimer's and Dementia

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The underdiagnosis of dementia, especially among Black and Hispanic patients, is a long-standing challenge in medicine.

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Media Contact Karen Teber, [email protected] (May 31, 2024) — In the years prior to an Alzheimer’s disease or other memory disorder diagnosis, credit scores begin to weaken and payment delinquency begins to increase, concludes new research led by Georgetown University. The findings show consistent deterioration in these financial outcomes over the quarters leading up to diagnosis.

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A novel speech analysis tool that uses artificial intelligence successfully detected mild cognitive impairment and dementia in a Spanish-speaking population, according to research led by UT Southwestern Medical Center. The study, published in Frontiers in Neurology, provides preliminary support for the algorithm as an early screening tool that may help identify patients at risk of developing dementia.

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People who report early memory problems and whose partners also suspect they have memory problems have higher levels of tau tangles in the brain, a biomarker associated with Alzheimer’s disease, according to a study published in the May 29, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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The sport of orienteering, which simultaneously combines exercise with challenging navigation, may be better for the brain than exercise alone, according to new research from kinesiologists at McMaster University.

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Volume 29, Issue 2 of SLAS Discovery features two review articles, six original research articles covering phenotypic screening perspectives, medulloblastoma therapies and interventions for neurodegenerative diseases.

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Even slight cognitive changes can affect an older person’s decision to stop driving, according to a new study by researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis. The findings suggest that routine cognitive testing — in particular, the kind of screening designed to pick up the earliest, most subtle decline — could help older adults and their physicians make decisions about driving that maximizes safety while preserving independence as long as possible.

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What factors lead older adults to stop driving? A new study followed older adults who had no memory or thinking problems to examine this question. The study is published in the May 22, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

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People who eat more ultra-processed foods like soft drinks, chips and cookies may have a higher risk of having memory and thinking problems and having a stroke than those who eat fewer processed foods, according to a new study published in the May 22, 2024, online issue of Neurology®, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. The study does not prove that eating ultra-processed foods causes memory and thinking problems and stroke. It only shows an association.

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Australian scientists are exploring how harmful gut bacteria from a poor diet can access the brain and trigger early onset Alzheimer's disease.

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A research team led by the University of California, Irvine has revealed the link between the frequency of sleep apnea events during the rapid-eye-movement stage and the severity of verbal memory impairment in older adults at risk for Alzheimer’s disease. Verbal memory refers to the cognitive ability to retain and recall information presented through spoken words or written text and is particularly vulnerable to Alzheimer’s.

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Engineers at the University of California San Diego have discovered that some brain cells age more rapidly than others, and they are disproportionately abundant in individuals afflicted with Alzheimer’s disease. Additionally, researchers observed sex-specific differences in the aging process of certain brain cells, with the female cortex exhibiting a higher ratio of “old” oligodendrocytes to “old” neurons compared to the male cortex.

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Understanding the human exposome — a person’s myriad health exposures over a lifetime — can reveal unknowns about diseases not explained fully by our DNA. Artificial intelligence will be indispensable in efforts to understand the role of biology and environment in disease and health.

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In a groundbreaking study published May 2, 2024 in Neuron, researchers have identified four new genetic risk factors for multiple system atrophy (MSA), shedding light on this poorly understood disorder.

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With this funding, FAU researchers will shed light on the biological functions of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) by taking advantage of synthetic chemistry strategies; provide an innovative online screening tool for older drivers with cognitive decline; and gain a deeper understanding of the role of brain cholesterol in AD.