Category Archives: Neuro-Psych

Dementia, Depression And A New Path

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It is not at all uncommon for a person suffering from mild cognitive impairment or mild to moderate dementia to also suffer from depression. There is enough overlap between the signs and symptoms of each disease that teasing apart the diagnoses, or verifying the presence of both, can be difficult for clinicians. And the presence of cognitive issues can make traditional treatments for depression, such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), more difficult to practice.
Recently, a number of groups have worked to adjust CBT and related therapies to better suit those suffering from both dementia and depression. One is called Problem Adaptation Therapy (or PATH) and focuses on solving tangible problems that fuel feelings of sadness and hopelessness, incorporating tools like checklists, calendars, signs and videos, to make it accessible for people with memory issues. Another, called the Peaceful Mind program, developed for patients with anxiety and dementia, simplifies traditional cognitive behavioral therapy.

Here are links to five media articles on depression and dementia:
How are depression and dementia related?
Alzheimer’s or depression: Could it be both?
Depression | Alzheimer’s Association
New Therapies Help Patients With Dementia Cope With Depression
Cognitive behavior therapy for anxiety in people with dementia: a clinician guideline for a person-centered approach.

Here are three research articles dealing with Problem Adaptation Therapy (PATH) therapy:
Problem Adaptation Therapy for Older Adults With Major Depression and Cognitive Impairment
Problem Adaptation Therapy (PATH) for Older Adults with Major Depression and Cognitive Impairment: A Randomized Clinical Trial
Home-Delivered Problem Adaptation Therapy (PATH) for Depressed, Cognitively Impaired, Disabled Elders: A Preliminary Study

All links have been added to Neuro-Psych.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych

Alzheimer’s And Sleep

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A recent study suggests a connection between the slow waves of deep sleep and a cleaning process likely clearly some of the accumulation of brain toxins, include beta-amyloid. So it is recommended that aging people try to sleep as healthy as possible.

Here are links to three media articles about the work:
How Deep Sleep May Help The Brain Clear Alzheimer’s Toxins
Scientists Now Know How Sleep Cleans Toxins From the Brain
Sleep may trigger rhythmic power washing in the brain

And here is a link to the research study:
Coupled electrophysiological, hemodynamic, and cerebrospinal fluid oscillations in human sleep

All links have been added to Neuro-Psych

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych

Catch Up I: Dementia Signs, Microbiome & Brain, Processed Foods & More

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Here we set out five brief posts concerning links which either bring up to date earlier posts on Strong Brain, or which are simply of interest in and of themselves.

☞ Signs: Onset of Dementia

Our recent post Distilled: Signs of the Onset of Dementia listed 18 possible signs of the onset of dementia. The excellent article Recognizing Alzheimer’s Disease adds to that by providing a discussion of early warning signs and a view of diagnosis.

Category: Diagnosis & Tests

☞ Microbiome & Brain

Quite recently, it has become apparent that the microbiome (all the microbes resident in an organism) can affect the brain, including the amount of amyloid beta clumps and exhibition of autistic behaviors. Much of the work has been done with mice (surprise!), but some also on humans. This is a quite interesting article on these investigations:
Germs in Your Gut Are Talking to Your Brain. Scientists Want to Know What They’re Saying.

Category: Neuro-Psych

☞ More on Processed Foods

Recently we published a somewhat lengthy post Best To Avoid Over-Processed Foods. The article below adds to that post:
What’s so bad about processed foods? Scientists offer clues.

Category: Diet

☞ Cancer Treatment and Dementia

A very large U.S. study of prostate cancer patients in their 70’s demonstrates a notable increased risk of Alzheimer’s among patients who received Androgen Deprivation Therapy.
Dementia tied to hormone-blocking prostate cancer treatment
Hormone Therapy for Prostate Cancer Tied to Dementia
Original research:
Association Between Androgen Deprivation Therapy Use and Diagnosis of Dementia in Men With Prostate Cancer

Category: Risk Factors

☞ Dementia Screening During Wellness Exams

The article Alzheimer’s Screenings Often Left Out Of Seniors’ Wellness Exams discusses the situation vis-a-vie dementia screening during annual wellness exams for seniors. The number of seniors experiencing them, and the number of physicians administering them, are relatively low, for a variety of reasons discussed in the article. Most likely, large-scale routine screening won’t be happening until a moderately inexpensive blood test is widely available.

Category: Diagnosis & Tests

Each group of links has been added to the indicated category.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Diagnosis & Tests, Diet, Neuro-Psych, Risk Factors

Napping: Alzheimer’s Disease Destroys Alertness Neurons

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For some time, excessive daytime drowsiness and napping has been regarded as one of the earliest signs of Alzheimer’s. It was argued that daytime naps were a consequence of poor night’s sleep (common for Alzheimer’s patients). However, new research shows that the tau tangles characteristic of Alzheimer’s directly attack the brain regions responsible for maintaining daytime alertness. Hence, excessive daytime napping can indeed be seen as an early warning sign of the onset of Alzheimer’s.

Here are three media articles and a university post:
Alzheimer’s disease destroys neurons that keep us awake
Alzheimer’s Appears to Attack The Neurons That Keep Us Awake
Alzheimer’s disease destroys neurons that keep us awake
Alzheimer’s Disease Destroys Neurons that Keep Us Awake
Here is the research publication [paywall]:
Profound degeneration of wake-promoting neurons in Alzheimer’s disease

All links have been added to Neuro-Psych.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Diagnosis & Tests, Neuro-Psych

Sleep & Alzheimer’s

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Recent research demonstrates a good reason to sleep deeply: the slow and steady brain (and cardiopulmonary) activity associated with deep non-REM sleep are best for the function of the glymphatic system, the brain’s unique process of removing waste. That waste includes toxic proteins like beta amyloid and tau which are associated with Alzheimer’s.

Here are two media articles on the work:
Not all sleep is equal when it comes to cleaning the brain
Study: Deep Sleep Best for Brain ‘Cleaning,’ Emphasizes Link Between Sleep and Alzheimer’s

The research article is published at [paywall]: Science 22 Feb 2019: Vol. 363, Issue 6429, pp. 831-832.

The links have been added to Alzheimer’s > Neurology & Neuroplasticity.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych

Sounds Like SF: Brain Zaps Boost Memory

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Short-term (“working”) memory is crucial for a range of cognitive activities, ranging from reading to counting and more. As we, say, read a sentence, groups of brain neurons fire in coordinated ways to create brain waves to hold words in working memory as long as we need them to comprehend the sentence. As we age, these coordinated brain waves begin to fall out of sync, causing short-term memory to falter.

Recently published research demonstrated that applying jolts of weak electrical current can synchronize waves in the prefrontal and temporal cortex—two brain areas critical for cognition. The experimental subjects were 42 healthy people in their 60s and 70s. On associated visual recognition tests, the subjects improved their test performance for about an hour. A control group had current applied to different brain areas and did not show any test improvement. Interestingly, applying current to produce “chatter” in the brains of young people in their 20’s reduced their test performance.

Below are four media articles on the work:
Zapping elderly brains with electricity improves short-term memory—for almost an hour
Scientists reverse memory decline using electrical pulses
Could Transcranial Brain Stimulation Help Sharpen Memory?
Brain zaps boost memory in people over 60

Here is the Boston University press release on the work:
As Memories Fade, Can We Supercharge Them Back to Life?

Here is a link to the research article:
Working memory revived in older adults by synchronizing rhythmic brain circuits

All links have been added to Neuro-Psych.

Category: Neuro-Psych

New Genetic Work May Provide Future Protection

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A large new investigation, using over 94,000 people in the US and Europe with clinically diagnosed Alzheimer’s Disease, explored their genetic makeup with reference to that disease. The study revealed five new genetic variants that increase risk for Alzheimer’s. The work will will not immediately affect medical practice in the immediate future, but potentially will provide insights into brain/body interactions involved with dementia, and may help lead to treatments for young people who carry these genes.

Here are two media articles about the work:
Newly discovered Alzheimer’s genes further hope for future treatments
Alzheimer’s Disease Meta-Analysis Identifies Five New Risk Genes

Here is the NIH (National Institutes of Health) press release about the work:
Data sharing uncovers five new risk genes for Alzheimer’s disease

And here is the research publication:
Genetic meta-analysis of diagnosed Alzheimer’s disease identifies new risk loci and implicates Aβ, tau, immunity and lipid processing

All links have been added to Alzheimers > Risk Factors > Genetics and Neuro-Psych.

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych, Risk Factors

Gum Disease And/Or Herpes: Alzheimer’s Culprits?

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Science doesn’t always proceed linearly straight-forward. Quite often, it zigs and zags between competing hypotheses which can even be contradictory. Evidence is beginning to accumulate that this may indeed be the case with Alzheimer’s research. For over thirty years, from the early 1980’s, the dominant hypothesis has been that the accumulations of amyloid and tau protein plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer’s patients are abnormal and are the cause of the mental decline of those patients. So research focused on how to directly halt or mitigate the growth of those plaques, and that work has been strikingly disappointing. Quite large amounts of money have been invested in attempting to develop drugs which function directly against the plaque accumulation, yet none have been successful in human trials.

The hypothesis that there might be an external physical cause for the plaque accumulation, that there might be a bacterial or viral agent prompting the amyloid and tau accumulations, that the plaque accumulations might actually be a way the brain fights back against certain invaders, was regarded a heresy. But now there is developing evidence that there might be one or two or even more invading agents against which the brain attempts to fight back with the amyloid and tau plaques. (For the story of one of the herpes researchers, see How an outsider in Alzheimer’s research bucked the prevailing theory — and clawed for validation.)

We posted earlier (Herpes & Alzheimer’s and Herpes & Alzheimer’s — More) about studies strongly suggesting that the Herpes virus may be one of the causative agents. Separately, other studies (Periodontitis is associated with cognitive impairment among older adults: analysis of NHANES-III and
Inflammation and Alzheimer’s disease: Possible role of periodontal diseases) have suggested Periodontal diseases as similar agents. Now a new study strongly suggests that this may indeed be the case.

Here are four media articles about the newest work:
We may finally know what causes Alzheimer’s – and how to stop it
DEMENTIA AND GUM DISEASE: ALZHEIMER’S LINKED TO GINGIVITIS
Gum Disease Bacteria Found in Alzheimer’s Brains
How gum disease could lead to Alzheimer’s

And here is the research report on the work:
Porphyromonas gingivalis in Alzheimer’s disease brains: Evidence for disease causation and treatment with small-molecule inhibitors

All links have been added to Alzheimer’s > Risk Factors and Neuro-Psych

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych, Risk Factors, Science

Zombie Mice Brain Cells: Clearance Stops Cognitive Decline

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Bodies, both mice and human, have a natural anti-cancer defense. Cells which have accumulated so many mutations that might lead to uncontrolled growth (i.e., cancer) move into senescent mode; they cease dividing and are eventually eliminated by the immune system.

Recently published research on mice has demonstrated the rather striking finding occurring when clearing or flushing all senescent cells from the brains of mice genetically bred to exhibit signs of dementia: “When senescent cells were removed, we found that the diseased animals retained the ability to form memories, eliminated signs of inflammation, did not develop [protein] tangles, and had maintained normal brain mass.”

Below are links to three media articles on the work, together with a link to the research article abstract.

Removing faulty brain cells staves off dementia in mice
Over-the-hill cells may cause trouble in the aging brain
Zombie cells found in brains of mice prior to cognitive loss
Research abstract:
Clearance of senescent glial cells prevents tau-dependent pathology and cognitive decline

All links have been added to
Alzheimer’s > Neurology & Neuroplasticity

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych, Science

Is It Possible Alzheimer’s Is An Infectious Disease?

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Although a “germ theory” approach to Alzheimer’s has occasionally be advocated for years, it has never developed the traction of a “major” approach to the disease. Recently, evidence has begun accumulating that certain viruses, particularly the HHV-6 and HHV-7 human herpes viruses may be involved in the development of Alzheimer’s, albeit in a complex way (see Herpes & Alzheimer’s and Herpes & Alzheimer’s — More). A new article discussing this together with a new initiatives to explore the “germ theory” approach to Alzheimer’s has just been published:

Two striking statistics cited in that article are the following:

All links have been added to Alzheimer’s > Neurology & Neuroplasticity

Category: Alzheimers/Dementia, Neuro-Psych
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