Alzheimer's Disease

New research has found diabetic patients using a drug called metformin experience slower rates of cognitive decline and dementia compared to those not using the drug. The findings build on a body of evidence suggesting this drug generates anti-aging effects.

A protein, previously found to be an effective blood-based biomarker of neurodegenerative diseases, has for the first time been detected in eye fluid. The discovery lays the foundation for eye tests to catch neurodegenerative diseases before symptoms appear.

In some neurological disorders neuronal connections in the brain can be lost. Now researchers have created synthetic molecules that may be able to patch them up, with tests in cultured cells and mice showing promise in treating disease and injury.

A UC Berkeley study has found an association between poor sleep and accumulation of the toxic proteins thought to cause Alzheimer’s disease. The researchers suggest poor sleep could be a way to predict those at risk of developing the degenerative disease.

Researchers have uncovered what they say is the first direct evidence to show how an immune response can contribute to Alzheimer’s disease. The study adds to evidence highlighting the role of neuroinflammation in dementia and cognitive decline.

Researchers have turned their attention to the subtle differences in the language of Alzheimer's sufferers, and have developed an AI tool they say can pick up on these as a way of potentially screening for the disease.

Using a multi-modal approach to data analysis, scientists have identified a subtype of autism linked with a gene cluster known to affect neurodevelopment and lipid metabolism. It's suggested this subtype accounts for nearly seven percent of autism cases.

A new study is questioning whether Alzheimer’s treatments previously found to be ineffective in human trials should be re-examined, after the discovery of a specific gene that can inhibit a therapy’s efficacy is only present in 75 percent of people.

Scientists from the Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology in South Korea have found that key biomarkers in nasal discharge show potential as an early diagnostic tool for Alzheimer's disease that is cheap and non-invasive.

New data has found an association between increased body weight and decreased cerebral blood flow. The research offers insight into the links between Alzheimer’s and obesity, suggesting maintaining a healthy weight can reduce one’s risk of dementia.

Scientists investigating Alzheimer’s treatments at the Salk Institute have uncovered some key mechanisms that enable an experimental drug to reverse memory loss in mouse models of the disease, offering new targets for researchers in the field.

Scientists in Australia have made an exciting breakthrough in Alzheimer’s research, demonstrating what they describe as the first gene-therapy-based approach for treating advanced forms of the disease.