USA2 SPOTLIGHT

A January 30, 2017 Disruptive Women in Healthcare post honors UsAgainstAlzheimer’s Founding Boarding Member, Meryl Comer, in the launch of their “Disruptive Women to Watch in 2017.” Disruptive Women highlights women from a broad cross-section of disciplines who profoundly impact health and health care. Disruptive Women’s (DW) mission is “to serve as a platform for provocative ideas, thoughts, and solutions in the health sphere.”  This year, DW is focusing on Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias. Learn more about their Brain Health series: “The Brain is Wider Than the Sky.”

MUST READS

A January 29, 2017 Omaha World-Herald article reports on the current state of Alzheimer’s. With no known cure, researchers continue studying potential treatments through gene therapy, stem cells or vaccines, as well as psychological treatments involving exercises to improve memory or activities that offer positive reinforcement. After years of pressure from patient advocates, Medicare this month will begin reimbursing doctors to test patients with cognitive impairment at any stage — and offer information to families about caregiving. “This is some of the best news in dementia care,” said Dr. Stephen Bonasera, Memory and Aging Care Specialist, Department of Neurology, University of Nebraska Medical Center. “Doctors are going to be a lot more motivated to talk about a caregiving situation and what is working best for everyone while improving care. For the first time, the system is more aligned.”

A January 27, 2017 UPI article reported on a new study which finds that that triggers for Alzheimer's disease, i.e. biochemical reactions in brain tissue, can start as far back as the womb. Researchers from the University of British Columbia discovered that a vitamin A deficiency in a fetus or newborn could start the biochemical reaction, and that vitamin A supplements given to newborns could slow the progression of the disease. "Our study clearly shows that marginal deficiency of vitamin A, even as early as in pregnancy, has a detrimental effect on brain development and has long-lasting effect that may facilitate Alzheimer's disease in later life," said Dr. Welhong Song, study author, Psychiatry Professor, and Canada Research Chair in Alzheimer's disease.

RESEARCH, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY

A January 30, 2017 WESA (Pittsburgh NPR) article reported on the development of a diagnostic blood test for Alzheimer ’s, which could make it easier and cheaper to detect the disease, by researchers at the University of Pittsburgh, in collaboration with the Center for Biomedicine in Italy and the University of Chile. The test will help differentiate between Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia, as there is no single test for AD and doctors rely on a combination of clinical evaluation, neuropsychological testing and brain scans to diagnose. “The importance of the blood test is cost. Here you have a technology that can be used for diagnosis at a very low cost,” said Neurology Professor, Oscar Lopez.

A January 27, 2017 Scientific American article reported on a new study, published last week in Science Translational Medicine, suggesting compounds called antisense oligonucleotides, or ASOs, may not only reduce levels of existing tau but also prevent its formation. The ASOs show promise in treating an array of conditions, including brain disorders and other neurological diseases. ASO treatment decreased brain inflammation (thought to contribute to Alzheimer’s), prevented neuronal death and reduced tau aggregates already present in the brain. “There are lots of tau-based treatments being looked at, but this is the first drug that we’re aware of that actually reduces the expression of the protein–that prevents it from even being made,” says lead study author, Sarah DeVos.

EVENTS AND RESOURCES

Meet-up for the Disruptive Women in Healthcare luncheon, “Navigating Uncertainity: Disruptive Women Style” in Orlando, Florida on February 21, 2017.