MUST READS

An October 19, 2018 Newsweek article spotlighted the work of Professor Ruth Itzhaki from the University of Manchester, UK, who has been studying the link between herpes and Alzheimer’s disease for more than 20 years. Up to 3.7 billion people under age 50 (estimated 67 percent of the world’s population) have the herpes simplex virus type 1 (HSV-1). “HSV1 could account for 50% or more of Alzheimer's disease cases. Despite the involvement of a virus, the [Alzheimer's] disease is apparently not contagious,” said Itzhaki. She believes antiviral drugs could prevent AD. Also covered by EurekAlert!, The Conversation and others.

INDUSTRY UPDATE

According to an October 18, 2018 Globe Newswire release, Biogen will present data from its Alzheimer’s disease clinical development portfolio at the upcoming CTAD (Clinical Trials on Alzheimer’s Disease) program next week. “We have hopes that our collective research will one day help the millions of people living with Alzheimer’s disease,” said Samantha Budd Haeberlein, PhD.

An October 17, 2018 Benzinga post noted that shares of vTv Therapeutics, a clinical-stage pharmaceutical company, shot up 50 percent this week after announcing it will present data on its Alzheimer’s trials at CTAD next week. It will detail results from the Phase 3 azeliragon study, and a subgroup analysis from the STEADFAST trial, looking at the link between diabetes and dementia.

CLINICAL TRIAL SPOTLIGHT

An October 16, 2018 WTNH News 8 broadcast segment spotlighted the Generation Program at the New England Institute for Clinical Research, which is conducting two Alzheimer’s disease prevention studies. They are recruiting qualified participants between the ages of 55 to 70, who don’t have AD but are at “high risk” because of the presence of genes (two, three and four) from both parents. Each study will last between five to eight years. Find more information on the studies here.

LIFESTYLE

An October 18, 2018 CTV News article featured data, from a new US study at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health, to identify dementia risk factors. The study, based on access to 15 years of follow-up data on participants in the Cardiovascular Health Study Cognition Study (CHS-CS), found that those with arterial stiffness are more likely to develop dementia later in life. All were dementia-free at the start of the study. According to senior study author Rachel Mackey, PhD, MPH, “Although arterial stiffness is associated with markers of silent, or subclinical, brain damage and cognitive decline, until now, it was not clear that arterial stiffness was associated with the risk of dementia.”

GLOBAL PERSPECTIVES

An October 17, 2018 Express article looked at the link between Alzheimer’s disease and vascular dementia. According to The Alzheimer’s Society (UK), which funds research into the association, “Whilst diabetes is currently understood to be an important risk factor for dementia, not much is known about why this is the case. Understanding the relationship between diabetes and dementia will be important to tease apart the risks and causes that lie behind these two conditions.”

SEX MATTERS

An October 17, 2018 The Telegraph article reported that pre-eclampsia, a common pregnancy complication, could triple the risk of some forms of dementia, particularly vascular dementia. Researchers at the Statens Serum Institut in Denmark analyzed data from more than 1.1 million women who gave birth at least once between 1978 and 2015. According to the article, “Researchers said that the association seemed to be particularly strong for late onset disease - 65 and older - than for early onset disease. The study was observational, so could not prove cause and effect.” Also covered by The BMJ.