Over 500 guests enjoyed A Time of Your Life Saturday, March 10th, and raised much-needed funding to support research at UCI MIND.  Thank you to sponsor San Clemente Villas by the Seas for this video that shares the sights and sounds of the evening.

A study published in the February 28 issue of the journal Neurology provides more evidence that high dietary consumption of omega-3 fatty acids, found in fish such as salmon and tuna, may protect the brain against cognitive impairment. The research team, led by Dr. Zaldy S. Tan, found that healthy older adults 58-76 (m = 67) with the lowest  red blood cell (RBC) levels of the omega-3 fatty acids docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) had "older" brains than their peers as well as a vascular pattern of cognitive impairment.  Researchers examined the relationship of RBC fatty acid levels…

Learn about Mild Cognitive Impairment, Alzheimer's disease, and ways to support research at UCI MIND Is dementia the same as Alzheimer's disease?  Dr. Cordula Dick-Muehlke, Director of Education at UCI MIND, answers this common question and describes Mild Cognitive Impairment, the transitional stage between normal aging and dementia. In January 2012, UCI MIND was awarded a $25,000 grant by the S. L. Gimbel Foundation in support of Memory Screening and Education to Advance Alzheimer’s Disease Research.   Funding will enable UCI MIND to educate the community about memory loss, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias as well as opportunities to participate in…

   

Researchers at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine have demonstrated that bexarotene, an FDA-approved drug for the  treatment of skin cancer, dramatically and rapidly clears amyloid plaques from the brains of mice bred with Alzheimer's disease.  Led by Gary Landreth, Ph.D.,  the study just published on line in Science Express, found that bexarotene not only enhanced clearance of beta amyloid, an abnormal protein associated with Alzheimer's disease, but also improved some cognitive and behavioral functions.   After discovering that Apolipoprotein E (ApoE), the main cholesterol carrier in the brain, facilitates clearance of beta amyloid, Landreth and his colleagues decided…

Trailer video for the full version of a documentary that looks at what UCI is doing to fight Alzheimer's disease.   UCI Mind Teaser from John Hess on Vimeo.

Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary of Health and Human Services, announced today that the Obama administration would increase funding for Alzheimer's disease research by $130 million.   An extra $50 million will be made available immediately, and another $80 million will be added to the fiscal year 2013 federal budget to be released next week.  In total, this funding represents a 25% increase in funding for Alzheimer's disease research over the next two years.  An additional $25 million will be allocated for caregiver support, provider education, public awareness, and improvements in data infrastructure.  "We can't wait to confront the growing threat that Alzheimer's…

Dr. Aimee Pierce, Assistant Clinical Professor in UCI’s Department of Neurology, has been named Medical Director of the UCI MIND Memory Assessment Clinic.  Hailing from Eugene, Oregon, Dr. Pierce earned her B.S. in Biology at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, CA, and her M.D. at the Columbia College of Physicians and Surgeons.  After graduating she completed an internship in Internal Medicine at New York Presbyterian Hospital, a residency in neurology at UCLA, and a fellowship in geriatric neurology and dementia at the VA San Diego Healthcare System affiliated with UCSD.  Dr. Pierce officially joined the Department of Neurology…

On January 19, UCI MIND launched the MIND Matters Club at the home of Burton and Linda Young, who graciously hosted this inaugural gathering of individuals who have committed to  giving $1,906 or more annually to UCI MIND.  Guests gathered to hear Dr. Margaret Gatz, Professor of Psychology at the University of Southern California and Foreign Adjunct Professor at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm, describe her research into dementia among Swedish twins.  Dr. Gatz and her colleagues followed Swedish twins across the past 25 years in order to identify differences between twin partners who developed dementia and those who did…

The graduate student group ReMIND and the UCI MIND Institute will be hosting the Emerging Scientists Symposium on Neurological Disorders on February 9th at the University Club. It is a unique opportunity for graduate and postdoctoral researchers to present their work. Renowned Alzheimer's disease researcher Dr. Li-Huei Tsai will give the keynote address. All are welcome to attend!