Contributed by Mark Mapstone, PhD UCI MIND faculty Mark Mapstone, PhD and Ira Lott, MD collaborated on research that was recently published in JAMA Neurology. Learn more about their findings: Studying Alzheimer’s disease in people with Down syndrome is a very important avenue for research because nearly all people with Down syndrome will develop the brain changes of Alzheimer’s disease. These changes include the abnormal accumulation of two proteins; amyloid and tau. In this study, we wanted to know if we could measure these changes in blood and if these changes accurately reflect the changes happening in the brain.  We…

DOTHAN, Ala. (WTVY) - Alzheimer’s and Dementia affect millions of people worldwide. Changes in the brains of people with the disease can start decades before the person actually experiences symptoms, that’s according to the AHEAD Study. With June being Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness month, doctors and researchers of the AHEAD study are urging people to be conscious about their health and their loved ones. Doctor Josh Grill, a University of California Irvine professor, shares tips to improve and become mindful of your brain health. He said taking part in physical exercise, eating a healthy diet, getting a good night’s sleep…

Image Credit: David Tett via Centre for Ageing Better Exercise could be a powerful defense against Alzheimer’s disease. Three dementia researchers explain how it works. NOVA - When it comes to dementia prevention, sleep and exercise may work together, says neuroscientist Miranda Chappel-Farley, a Ph.D. candidate at University of California, Irvine. … Together, they create a powerful bulwark against dementia and represent a lifestyle factor ignored at your peril, says Chappel-Farley, who cautions against “targeting exercise but not paying attention to sleep.” Read more here >

Contributed by David Sultzer, MD and Joshua Grill, PhD An FDA Advisory Committee met on June 17 to provide input to the Agency regarding the effectiveness of pimavanserin for the treatment of psychosis in Alzheimer’s disease.  The Committee voted 9 to 3, with the majority finding insufficient evidence of effectiveness in this population. This input comes on the heels of an FDA review last year that declined to approve pimavanserin for psychosis in a broad group of dementia syndromes, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia, Lewy body and Parkinson’s disease dementia, and frontotemporal dementias.  At that time, the Agency felt that…

The multidisciplinary team will focus on participant recruitment and retainment for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders research Josh Grill, left, and Daniel Gillen will examine what role recruitment registries for ADRD research can play in overcoming exclusions to improve research outcomes. What is the best way to recruit participants to join a clinical studies registry, and can such registries help better diversify clinical research samples? These are two critical questions that UCI researchers are tackling with a new National Institutes of Health grant, “Recruiting and Retaining Participants from Disadvantaged Neighborhoods in Registries.” The work will be led by Joshua Grill, professor…

Findings will advance development of better early diagnostic tools, new treatment strategies “This project will capture a composite of disease features to expand our understanding of the brain circuits susceptible to aging and Alzheimer’s. Our findings will facilitate the development of more effective early diagnostic tools and the discovery of new therapies,” says UCI’s Xiangmin Xu. Steve Zylius / UCI The University of California, Irvine has been awarded a five-year, $14 million grant from the National Institutes of Health to study brain circuits that are susceptible to aging and Alzheimer’s disease. The research findings will advance the development of early…

In a blunt rejection of current norms, two leaders of biomarker disclosure research argue research participants should have the opportunity to know whether they have biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease . Biomarkers, or biological indicators of a disease, are essential to the study and diagnosis of Alzheimer’s and other diseases that cause dementia. Clinicians use imaging such as MRI and PET scans to measure biomarkers and make accurate diagnoses. Blood tests are fast becoming available too. The tests also allow researchers to develop targeted drug therapies. But in both clinical care and research, biomarker results are infrequently disclosed. Insurers typically do…