How is Alzheimer’s disease diagnosed? October 25th Research Conference #SpeakerSpotlight: Dr. David Sultzer is a board-certified Geriatric Psychiatrist and Professor of Psychiatry & Human Behavior at UCI School of Medicine. After more than 20 years at UCLA and the West Los Angeles VA Hospital, Dr. Sultzer recently joined the team at UCI MIND and leads its clinical research operations, including clinical trials for new treatments. He is internationally recognized for his research activities to better understand the phenomenology, pathophysiology, and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. In the session “Advances in Clinical Diagnosis," Dr. Sultzer will explain how doctors arrive at a…
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How and why are mice used to study Alzheimer’s disease? October 25th Research Conference #SpeakerSpotlight: Dr. Frank LaFerla is a Chancellor’s Professor and the Dean of the UCI School of Biological Sciences. He served as Director of UCI MIND from 2009-2018 and continues to lead its NIH-designated Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. Dean LaFerla invented the first mouse model to develop amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, leading to significant advances in our understanding of Alzheimer’s disease. In his presentation, Dean LaFerla will address how mouse models are used to study the disease, challenges with current models, and efforts toward new and…
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Contributed by Bryce Mander, PhD Getty Images Our colleagues at UCSF recently published findings in the journal Alzheimer’s and Dementia examining how tau pathology in different brain diseases – Alzheimer’s disease, progressive supranuclear palsy, and corticobasal degeneration – impacts brain cells that are in charge of keeping us awake. This study reported several important findings: In all three diseases, there was a reduction in brain cells that help promote cortical arousal. In all three diseases, tau pathology was quite substantial in several of the wake-promoting cells in the brainstem region. Tau pathology in the brainstem in Alzheimer’s disease was associated with…
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Contributed by Joshua D. Grill, PhD A recent article in the New York Times highlights an important set of conundrums regarding amyloid imaging for Alzheimer’s disease. Amyloid imaging can detect with relative certainty whether beta amyloid plaques, which are a pathological hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease, are accumulating in a person’s brain. Conundrum #1: Amyloid scans are not covered by insurance for people with cognitive problems. Research led by our friend Dr. Gil Rabinovici at UCSF has demonstrated that amyloid imaging can and does yield important guidance to clinical care. It can change diagnoses and instruct prescribing decisions (more on this >).…
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