Alzheimer’s disease tagged posts

A KAIST-led research team has found that a protein involved in gene regulation can suppress the harmful aggregation of amyloid-beta, a peptide associated with Alzheimer’s disease. The approach also reduced the toxicity of protein aggregates that had already formed.

In experiments using a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease, the treatment reduced protein accumulation in the brain and improved memory recognition, suggesting a possible route toward new therapeutics.

The research team led by Professor Mi Hee Lim from the Department of Chemistry identified a new approach to controlling the aggregation and toxicity of amyloid-beta. The findings were published in Advanced Science.

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The liver’s job of clearing harmful substances from the body is so essential that the organ may have implications for addressing unexpected diseases, including Alzheimer’s and heart disease. A promising example comes from new Keck School of Medicine of USC research published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry.

The study, conducted in aged rats, shows that an experimental drug called cinaciguat reverses effects of aging in the liver. This, in turn, may lower the risk of Alzheimer’s disease and clogged arteries...

A new study by investigators from Mass General Brigham has used next-generation imaging technology to discover that when the brain is falling asleep, it shows a coordinated shift in activity.

The researchers found that during NREM (non-rapid eye movement) sleep, parts of the brain that handle movement and sensory input stay active and keep using energy, while areas involved in thinking, memory and daydreaming quiet down and use less energy. Their results are published in Nature Communications.

“This research helps explain how the brain stays responsive to the outside world even as awareness fades during sleep,” said corresponding author Jingyuan Chen, Ph.D., an assistant investigator at the Athinoula A. Martinos Center for Biomedical Imaging at Massachusetts General Hospital.

For 25 years, scientists have studied “SuperAgers”—people aged 80 and above whose memory rivals those decades younger. Research reveals that their brains either resist Alzheimer’s-related plaques and tangles or remain resilient despite having them.

These individuals maintain a youthful brain structure, with a thicker cortex and unique neurons linked to memory and social skills. Insights from their biology and behavior could inspire new strategies to protect cognitive health into late life.

For the past 25 years, researchers at Northwestern Medicine have been examining people aged 80 and older, known as “SuperAgers,” to uncover why...