Magdalena Kegel,  —

Scientists have found that the membranes covering the brain — once believed to have little influence on the workings of the organ inside — are housing stem cells. The discovery is likely to advance research into stem cell therapies for brain regeneration, an attractive but so far unreachable treatment option…

After observing similarities in insulin molecular signaling between the pancreas and the brain, Japanese researchers suggest that Alzheimer’s disease is a form of diabetes condition that affects the brain. Their study, “Blockade of the KATP channel Kir6.2 by memantine represents a novel mechanism relevant to Alzheimer’s disease therapy,” recently…

A recently published study contends that older, cognitively healthy people who report feelings of loneliness have higher levels of the Alzheimer’s protein amyloid-beta in the brain — a finding that was not linked to depression. The experience of feeling lonely also was not connected to how extensive a person’s social…

Tiny gas bubbles, embedded in a layer of fat molecules, can turn out to be the answer to a difficulty researchers have been struggling with for decades — the delivery of drugs to the brain. The method uses ultrasound to force the drug-containing bubbles over the barrier that prevents most substances from…

In the wake of the failure of the investigational drug solanezumab, which stirred the debate over whether the prevailing amyloid theory of Alzheimer’s disease is still a viable working hypothesis, ProMIS Neurosciences announced their contribution to Alzheimer’s amyloid-related drug development. The announcement was accompanied by a commentary interpreting…

At a time when predictions of a dementia epidemic flourish, a recent study demonstrated that the rates have actually gone down in the U.S. — echoing findings from other studies that suggest that the idea of an epidemic is unfounded. Forces behind the decline in dementia diagnoses are complex, and…

The Alzheimer’s community lamented Eli Lilly’s recent announcement that its experimental therapy solanezumab failed to demonstrate efficacy in treating the disease in recent clinical trials. In the announcement, released Nov. 23, Lilly said it would not pursue regulartory approval for the drug. Solanezumab’s inability to demonstrate effectiveness in people with mild demential due to…

Anavex Life Sciences reported that its experimental drug Anavex 2-73 prevented further decline in mental capacity in a small Phase 2a trial involving 32 patients with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease. Although the trial was not designed to prove the treatment’s effectiveness, after about 10 months, patients had the same mental acuity…

A process believed to trigger toxicity and neuron death in Alzheimer’s disease may actually work to protect neurons in early disease stages — a finding that may be translated into treatments that boost this protective effect. Phosphorylated tau, which tends to aggregate into tangles inside neurons and is widely believed to…

Brain training can improve both memory and mood in people with mild cognitive impairment, but once a dementia diagnosis has been made, the training no longer has an impact. In the study, “Computerized Cognitive Training in Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment or Dementia: A Systematic Review…