Salon.com > Alzheimer's Disease

Study: Alzheimer’s linked to brain changes at birth

Thu, 03 Jan 2013 13:52:00 +0000

Researchers at the University of North Carolina school of Medicine have found that certain brain patterns in adults with Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and autism can also be seen in the brain scans of infants.

"These results suggest that prenatal brain development may be a very important influence on psychiatric risk later in life," said lead author of the study and assistant professor of psychiatry at UNC, Rebecca C. Knickmeyer. In addition to early detection, the study may also lead to early intervention breakthroughs in the degenerative brain disorder.

According to the report on UNC's website:

The study included 272 infants who received MRI scans at UNC Hospitals shortly after birth. The DNA of each was tested for 10 common variations in 7 genes that have been linked to brain structure in adults. These genes have also been implicated in conditions such as schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, autism, Alzheimer's disease, anxiety disorders and depression.

For some polymorphisms – such as a variation in the APOE gene which is associated with Alzheimer's disease – the brain changes in infants looked very similar to brain changes found in adults with the same variants, Knickmeyer said. "This could stimulate an exciting new line of research focused on preventing onset of illness through very early intervention in at-risk individuals."

My mom has Alzheimer’s

Wed, 21 Nov 2012 01:00:00 +0000

Dear Cary,

When my mom first was showing signs of dementia I was adamant that "something must be done" as I got married, started a new career, and quickly had two small children. Naturally, what I did was try to convince my mother to move into town, stop driving her car, and consider visiting a neurologist. My older brother, who lived much closer than my 1,500 plus miles, shrugged like it was no big deal. I should mention that both of us were still in our 30s, one of us (ahem, me) quite at the low end.

Fast-forward almost seven years and now my mother had moved in with my brother, only to move out and into assisted living in the same city where he resides. Not even in the same state where she lived prior to this upheaval, but very close and much more similar culturally, weather-wise, and a million other ways than my own state of California. Much. As my older brother goes through a divorce (no children) and continues on his path of creating, working, and great success, he has grown incredibly frustrated with the burden of caring for a parent with a very rare form of Alzheimer's. While her facility does do a lot, she has always felt that family should do most of the caretaking and is constantly reaching out to my brother for help. For my part, I visit four times a year to help relieve the burden, and call often. In fact, my brother will tell me when he has a weekend he needs to focus and I'll check in multiple times to make sure she does not disturb him. Still, it's not even close to the job my brother has taken on at an early age.

Alzheimer’s broke his silence

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 00:00:00 +0000

Like many men of my generation, I was not very close to my father. He was a quiet man who rarely showed affection. When he did, it was subtle, like the way he would gently put his hand on my head, or when his eyes would soften upon seeing me after his long and exhausting work day.

As I grew older, however, his silence became an invisible barrier between us. By 10, I was convinced he didn’t love me. Sitting in the back seat of our station wagon on a family trip, I made a bet with myself: If he said anything to me -- directly to me -- within the following 24 hours, it meant he loved me.

He went 41 hours.

I grew up, went to college far from home, worked hard at finding a career, finally returned to Los Angeles and settled down with a family of my own. My father and I spoke every so often, but usually just as a prelude to my longer conversations with my mother. We never called the other directly just to talk. There was a wall of silence between us -- but by now it seemed normal.

Then one day, 15 years ago, a call came from my mother. My father had fallen down and was at UCLA Hospital. I was used to the idea that he would die young of heart disease. His mother had died at 55, and he’d had two bypass operations, the first when I was 16. So I was unprepared for his diagnosis: He had a variant of Alzheimer’s disease.

“Male” DNA found in “female” brains

Thu, 27 Sep 2012 19:50:00 +0000

Researchers have found male DNA inside female brains for the first time, prompting paradigm-shaking biological questions.

According to a study published in PLOS ONE journal and picked up by Canada.com, male microcherism -- "the 'intermingling' of small numbers of cells or portions of DNA in a person from a genetically different individual" -- was discovered in the brain of 63 percent of female patients tested.

It is thought that the male DNA found in the female brains likely derived from previous pregnancies with XY [male] chromosomed babies. (Indeed, it's worth pointing out that the designation of "male" and "female" DNA, as determined by it containing XY or XX chromosomes, is contentious in gender theory, since the way the terms "male" and "female" function in the world is not entirely determined by chromosomes.)

The new findings are significant for two reasons. First, researchers found that women with Alzheimer's disease appeared to have lower concentrations of "male" DNA in brain regions most affected by the disease. This could be a crucial finding for scientists researching the condition.

Why art is good for Alzheimer’s patients

Tue, 25 Sep 2012 22:46:00 +0000

Art is a powerful sensory experience — looking at a piece of work and thinking through it sharpens concentration, brings back memories, and stirs emotions, as anyone who has experienced Stendhal Syndrome can attest. The Berman Museum of Art in Collegeville, Pennsylvania is taking advantage of these unique qualities of art to treat Alzheimer’s patients, who find they can focus and remember more while discussing works of art.

Curators from the Berman Museum are bringing selections from their collection to Parkhouse, a nearby nursing facility, to do some testing in preparation for a new exhibition meant for the mentally handicapped called “Access-Ability,” reports WHYY’s Newsworks. Viewing the art (shown in laminated print form, of course) provokes calm discussion and even laughter among the patients, for whom total lucidity is a rarity.

Banded, stapled, saved

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 22:08:00 +0000

Quitting smoking, the old saw goes, is easy to do—I’ve done it dozens of times. It’s staying clean that poses the real challenge. So, too, with losing weight: despite the pills, pedometers, hypnosis, and low-cal breakfast bars, pounds have a way of creeping back onto the hips. More than a third of Americans are now overweight, and another third obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, with black and Hispanic women hit hardest. Among children, one in 10 pre-kindergarten students are obese; in elementary schools, that figure is one in five.

Forgot your keys? It could be your diet

Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:51:00 +0000

Yet another reason not to overeat: According to a recent study from the Mayo Clinic, there is a link between memory loss and a high-calorie diet. People over 70 who consumed more than 2,143 calories a day doubled their risk of memory loss and mild cognitive impairment — a stage of decline beyond normal age-related changes when memory, language, and thinking start slipping.

“We observed a dose-response pattern, which simply means the higher the amount of calories consumed each day, the higher the risk of mild cognitive impairment,” explained study author Yonas E. Geda, a neurologist and psychiatrist with Mayo Clinic in Arizona. There is good news, though. People with diets that provide between 600 and 2,143 calories per day showed no memory decline over the 8-year study.

Our self-cleansing brain

Thu, 16 Aug 2012 22:22:00 +0000

The brain can be a messy place. Thankfully, it has good plumbing: Scientists have just discovered a cleansing river inside the brain, a fluid stream that might be enlisted to flush away the buildup of proteins associated with Alzheimer's, Huntington's and other neurodegenerative disorders.

The researchers, based at the University of Rochester (U.R.), University of Oslo and Stony Brook University, describe this new system in the journal Science Translational Medicine today. The study adds to the evidence that the star-shaped cells called astrocytes play a leading role in keeping the nervous system in good working order.