Category Research News (General)

An international team of scientists has developed a novel genetic score that allows individuals to calculate their age-specific risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease (AD) based upon genetic information. A description of the polygenic hazard scoring (PHS) system and its validation…

Scientists have discovered for the first time a functional link between bacteria in the intestines and Parkinson’s disease (PD). The researchers show that changes in the composition of gut bacterial populations–or possibly gut bacteria themselves–are actively contributing to and may…

For the first time, researchers have found higher levels of Gram-negative bacteria antigens in brain samples from late-onset Alzheimer’s disease patients. Compared to controls, patients with Alzheimer’s had much higher levels of lipopolysaccharide (LPS) and E coli K99 pili protein.…

Although the hallmark symptoms of Parkinson’s disease (PD) – such as involuntary shaking, slowness of movement and muscle rigidity – are related to movement, recent evidence has suggested that memory impairment plays an outsized role in diminished quality of life…

Using LED lights flickering at a specific frequency, researchers have shown that they can substantially reduce the beta amyloid plaques seen in Alzheimer’s disease, in the visual cortex of mice. This treatment appears to work by inducing brain waves known…

A fault with the natural waste disposal system that helps to keep our brain cell ‘batteries’ healthy may contribute to neurodegenerative disease, a new study has found. The research, published in the journal Cell Death and Disease, centres on problems…

Little is known about the role of the brain’s immune system in Alzheimer’s disease. But researchers have now found an early immune response in individuals with a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s: their brains showed abnormal immune reactions as early as…

People with Parkinson’s disease and cognitive impairment have disruptions in their brain networks that can be seen on a type of MRI, according to a study appearing online in the journal Radiology. Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a progressive disorder of…

People who live close to high-traffic roadways face a higher risk of developing dementia than those who live further away, new research has found. The study, published in The Lancet, found that people who lived within 50 metres of high-traffic…

A new study suggests that a key to Parkinson’s disease may lie in the mitochondria, the powerhouses of the cell. The results were published in Nature Communications. Mitochondria, it seems, are not able to adapt to the effects of aging…

Patients who had a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease (PD) with dementia (PDD) or dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) and had higher levels of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology in their donated post-mortem brains also had more severe symptoms of these Lewy…

Researchers have identified a naturally occurring molecule that has the potential for preserving sites of communication between nerves and muscles in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and over the course of aging — as well as a molecule that interferes with…

Researchers have discovered that mice with Huntington’s disease (HD) suffer defects in muscle maturation that may explain some symptoms of the disorder. The study, which was published in The Journal of General Physiology, suggests that HD is a disease of…

New details learned about a key cellular protein could lead to treatments for neurodegenerative diseases such as Parkinson’s, Huntington’s, Alzheimer’s, and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). At their root, these disorders are triggered by misbehaving proteins in the brain. The proteins…

Parkinson’s disease (PD) and other “synucleinopathies” are known to be linked to the misfolding of alpha-synuclein protein in neurons. Less clear is how this misfolding relates to the growing number of genes implicated in PD through analysis of human genetics.…

Older people who followed a Mediterranean diet retained more brain volume over a three-year period than those who did not follow the diet as closely, a new study published in Neurology shows. But contrary to earlier studies, eating more fish…

Researchers have identified a link between Huntington’s disease and dysfunction of the subthalamic nucleus, a component of the basal ganglia, a group of brain structures critical for movement and impulse control. Huntington’s disease is characterized by the progressive loss of…

The main changes in our brains as we get older are in the brain cells with a supporting role, called glial cells, scientists have found. The surprising finding is published in the journal Cell Reports. The researchers also found that…

A new laboratory study provides clues on a particular pathway of alpha-synuclein diffusion. Researchers have found that alpha-synuclein, a protein involved in a series of neurological disorders including Parkinson’s disease, is capable of travelling from brain to stomach and that…

In a recent study of adults with early memory loss, a research team found that practice of a simple meditation or music listening program may have multiple benefits for older adults with preclinical memory loss. In this randomized controlled trial,…

A study that followed more than 1,600 Canadians over five years found that sedentary older adults with no genetic risk factors for dementia may be just as likely to develop the disease as those who are genetically predisposed to it.…

Immunotherapy has proven to be effective against many serious diseases. But to treat diseases in the brain, the antibodies must first get past the obstacle of the blood-brain barrier. In a new study published in Theranostics, a research group describes…

Researchers have discovered that the spatial disorientation that leads to wandering in many Alzheimer’s disease patients is caused by the accumulation of tau protein in navigational nerve cells in the brain. The findings, in mice, could lead to early diagnostic…

While many of us haven’t heard of astrocytes, these cells are four times as plentiful in the human brain as nerve cells. Now, a team of researchers has found that astrocytes, which perform many indispensable functions in the brain, can…

Using war metaphors in reference to Alzheimer’s disease should be replaced with messages of resilience against a complex, age-associated condition, according to a team of researchers. Framing a health issue through comparisons to warfare is common in popular media and…

Although only 10 percent of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) cases are hereditary, a significant number of them are caused by mutations that affect proteins that bind RNA, a type of genetic material. Researchers studied several ALS cases with a mutation…

Newly published research has brought to light new information on the molecular mechanisms that cause Huntington’s disease, and defines new pathways to therapy discovery. The results of the study are published in The Journal of Clinical Investigation. Huntington’s disease is…

Researchers have developed a chemical compound called Fluselenamyl that detects amyloid clumps better than current FDA-approved compounds. The compound, described in a paper published in Scientific Reports, potentially could be used in brain scans to identify the signs of early-stage…

A meta-analysis has found that brain training – or Computerised Cognitive Training (CCT) – can improve memory in people with mild cognitive impairment, suggesting it may prevent dementia, which can take hold within a year. Researchers have found that engaging in…

A combination of virtual reality and treadmill training may prove effective in preventing dangerous falls associated with aging, Parkinson’s disease, mild cognitive impairment or dementia, according to a new study published in The Lancet. According to the study’s authors, the…

Researchers have found a potentially promising treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, by noticing a similarity in the way insulin signaling works in the brain and in the pancreas of diabetic patients. “In the pancreas, the Kir6.2 channel blockade increases the insulin…

New research reveals that foods like fruits and vegetables that are high in antioxidant nutrients and carotenoids are associated with better function in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) patients around the time of diagnosis. This is among the first studies to…

A collaboration of 32 researchers in seven countries has found a genetic mutation they say confers a risk for development of Parkinson’s disease earlier than usual. The study, published in Brain, is important because the risk comes from a single…

A lack of shrinkage in the area of the brain responsible for memory may be a sign that people with thinking and memory problems may go on to develop dementia with Lewy bodies rather than Alzheimer’s disease, according to a…

An international collaboration has shed light on the basal forebrain region, where the degeneration of neural tissue caused by Alzheimer’s disease appears even before cognitive and behavioral symptoms of the disease emerge. The research, published in Nature Communications, used data…

A Japanese research team has found that collapse of the Mitochondria-Associated Membrane (MAM) is a common pathological hallmark to two distinct inherited forms of ALS: SOD1- and SIGMAR1-linked ALS. The research findings were reported in EMBO Molecular Medicine. Recent studies…

Drug researchers have identified several new biological markers to measure the progression of the inherited neurodegenerative disorder Huntington’s disease (HD). Their findings, published in the Journal of Experimental Medicine, could benefit clinical trials that test new treatments for the disease.…

Researchers have shed new light on the nerve cell processes that lead to Alzheimer’s disease, overturning previously held ideas of how the disease develops and opening the door to new treatment options that could halt or slow its progression. The…

Synapses, the place where brain cells contact one another, play a pivotal role in the transmission of toxic proteins. This allows neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s to spread through the brain, according to new research published in Cell Reports. During…

Scientists have uncovered new details about how a repeating nucleotide sequence in the gene for a mutant protein may trigger Huntington’s and other neurological diseases. Researchers used computer models to analyze proteins suspected of misfolding and forming plaques in the…

In a hopeful sign for the health of the nation’s brains, the percentage of American seniors with dementia is dropping, a new study finds. The downward trend has emerged despite something else the study shows: a rising tide of three…

Researchers are developing technology that would make it possible to record brain activity as it plays out across networks. In research published in Nature Methods, they recorded the activity of thousands of neurons layered within three-dimensional sections of brain as…

Researchers have identified a naturally occurring molecule that has the potential for preserving sites of communication between nerves and muscles in amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and over the course of aging — as well as a molecule that interferes with…

A novel approach to analyzing brain structure that focuses on the shape, rather than the size, of particular features may allow identification of individuals who are in the early, pre-symptomatic stages of Alzheimer’s disease. A team of investigators used advanced…

Iron occurs naturally in the human body. However, in people with Parkinson’s disease it distributes in an unusual way over the brain, according to a new study that has been published in the journal Brain. Researchers applied a special type…

Accumulating amounts of amyloid in the brain have been associated with the development of dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Now a team of neuroscience and biochemistry researchers have made a novel discovery that illustrates for the first time the difference between…

Three years ago the United States government launched the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative to accelerate the development and application of novel technologies that will give us a better understanding about how brains work. Since then, dozens…

Researchers have known that the peptide amyloid beta plays a role in causing Alzheimer’s disease, but they are still working to determine how it becomes toxic. Researchers have found that amyloid beta must change its internal structure into a long,…

Researchers have located an intracellular defect that they believe is probably common to all forms of Parkinson’s disease. This defect, which precedes the death of a group of nerve cells whose loss is the hallmark of the condition, plays a…

A new study reveals one way to stop proteins from triggering an energy failure inside nerve cells during Huntington’s disease, an inherited genetic disorder caused by mutations in the gene that encodes huntingtin protein. Researchers have been looking for proteins…