Dev

Scientists studying two genes that are mutated in an early-onset form of Parkinson’s disease have deciphered how normal versions of these genes collaborate to help rid cells of damaged mitochondria. Mitochondria are the cell’s primary energy source, and maintaining their…

Just three months after a paper outed a gene for a mitochondrial protein as a potential cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis-frontotemporal dementia, four new publications have made the case clear. CHCHD10 is an ALS/FTD spectrum gene. A handful of different mutations…

The Walk On Project (WOP) has the aim of publicizing, raising awareness, and assisting in the research of “rare” neurodegenerative diseases. The 2014 WOP Call for research proposals has been extended and is now open until 20th October, 2014. The…

The ALzheimer’s COoperative Valuation in Europe (ALCOVE) project was a Joint Action co-financed by the European Commission to produce a set of evidence-based recommendations for policymakers on dementia. A recent article published in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry reports…

A multi-disciplinary research team led by Prof. H.Y. Edwin Chan of the School of Life Sciences at The Chinese University of Hong Kong (CUHK) has identified a novel genetic mutation that leads to spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA). The work has been…

Trinity College Dublin in Ireland played host to the launch event for a new campaign called “Hello Brain” on 22nd of September, 2014 Hello Brain is a campaign that promotes brain health through easy-to-understand scientific information. A website containing entertaining short…

The second in a series of four Global Dementia Legacy events took place on 11 and 12 September in the Canadian capital, Ottawa. The 200 delegates included experts from the research and industry sectors, health charities, patients, caregivers and government…

Twins who came to an ALS Clinic in Toronto were identical down to the repeats in their C9ORF72 genes, except one had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and the other did not. The mismatch suggests environmental influences modified the twins’ risk for…

Pharmaceutical companies, AstraZeneca and Eli Lilly and Co (Lilly) announced on 16 September having reached an agreement to jointly develop and commercialise AZD3293, an oral BACE inhibitor currently in development as a potential treatment for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). In Phase…

On 17 September, Alzheimer’s Disease International (ADI) released its annual World Alzheimer Report, this year on the topic of “Dementia and Risk Reduction: An analysis of protective and modifiable factors”. With predictions of a coming global avalanche of dementia cases,…