October 11, 2013

Today's Top Alzheimer's News

Anne Romney raises money for brain research, how sequestration is hurting science, thousands of research mice at risk due to the government shutdown (read more). 
 
 
 
 

Must read

  • An October 10, 2013 Los Angeles Times article reported that Anne Romney is donating the proceeds of her new cookbook to benefit brain research. According to the article, "After writing the cookbook this year, Romney announced that she would donate the proceeds to the center’s research into the causes and treatment of neurological diseases -- including multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease and ALS, also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease."
  • An October 9, 2013 The Independent (UK) opinion piece by Charlie Cooper cautioned against reading too much into "Alzheimer's breakthrough" headlines. According to Cooper, "We’ve heard about Alzheimer’s breakthroughs before. Some newspapers, looking for an easy front page that’s bound to fly off the shelves, are liable to seize on any bit of progress, no matter how minor, as the next big thing. With 800,000 people living with dementia in the UK, that’s not just disingenuous, it’s downright cynical – selling hope from the news stand when the fact is we have a long and arduous road to walk before we can talk about beating Alzheimer’s."
Sequestration 
  • An October 10, 2013 BBC News article reported on the negative impact of sequestration on science. Prof John Hardy, of University College London, said: "Vital work on Alzheimer's and Parkinson's is being held up while hardworking scientists are being forced to stay at home, without even being allowed to read their email. It is difficult to see how this is fiscally responsible."
  • An October 10, 2013 NPR article reported that thousands of mice used in medical research are at risk due to sequestration. According to the article, "The government shutdown is likely to mean an early death for thousands of mice used in research on diseases such as diabetes, cancer and Alzheimer's. Federal research centers including the National Institutes of Health will have to kill some mice to avoid overcrowding, researchers say. Others will die because it is impossible to maintain certain lines of genetically altered mice without constant monitoring by scientists. And most federal scientists have been banned from their own labs since Oct. 1."