June 24, 2015

Today's Top Alzheimer's News

USA2 SPOTLIGHT  

Upcoming Alzheimer’s Talks: Could boosting the brain’s immune system help fight Alzheimer’s? A breaking study found that microglia, the cells that make up the brain’s immune system, are suppressed with age – but the process can be reversed. In this study of mice they were able to reverse memory loss. Dr. Katrin Andreasson of Stanford University led the study, and she’ll be joining us for our June Alzheimer’s Talks to share her remarkable discovery and what it means for the future of Alzheimer’s treatment. Sign up here to join the call. 


MUST READS 

A June 24, 2015 The Hill opinion piece by Senator Roy Blunt (R-MO) called for a $2 billion funding boost for NIH. According to Sen. Blunt, “Now is the time to focus our efforts and our research on medical advances. That is why I have proposed a $2 billion increase in funding for the National Institutes of Health and reduced spending to pay for it…We increase funding by approximately $350 million for research into Alzheimer’s disease. Every 68 seconds, someone in America develops Alzheimer’s disease, and it currently affects more than five million Americans age 65 and older. Yet for every $260 Medicare and Medicaid spend on caring for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, the federal government spends only $1 on Alzheimer’s research. Further NIH-funded research is the best way to manage this disease in the future…Now is the time to prioritize biomedical research to increase critical life-saving medical treatments and high-quality cures available to all Americans.  It’s time that every American family is affected not just by these diseases, but by the breakthrough research and treatments underway now and the amazing research to come.”

A July 2015 Issue of Mother Jones featured an article about the link between air pollution and dementia. According to the article, “While coarse pollution particles seldom make it past our upper lungs, fine and ultrafine particles can travel from our nostrils along neural pathways directly into our brains. Once there, they can wreak a special havoc that appears to kick off or accelerate the downward spiral of degenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. While much of the research is still preliminary, the findings so far are compelling. Autopsies of the brains of people who lived in highly contaminated areas have turned up traces of pollution and corresponding brain trauma. And among those still living, epidemiologists have recorded elevated rates of brain disease and accelerated mental decline.”

A June 23, 2015 NewsWorks.org article profiled Alzheimer’s patient advocate Michael Ellenbogen’s “battle for inclusion after controversial remarks.” According to the article, “A Philadelphia man with Alzheimer's is under fire for submitting controversial comments to a gathering of those  involved with the National Alzheimer's Project Act in January…Even after those comments, Ellenbogen was vetted and asked to speak at a World Health Organization conference on dementia in Geneva in March. Upon his return to the U.S., Ellenbogen said he was banned from speaking at further NAPA events and any other events sponsored by the federal Department of Health and Human Services. The comments were meant to shock but were not a threat of violence, Ellenbogen said.”

A June 23, 2015 CNN article explored Alzheimer’s prevention strategies, including diet and sleep. According to the article, “One thing everyone agrees on: There are a lot of unknowns when it comes to Alzheimer's disease…He said he spends hours, not minutes, with each patient, assessing cognitive performance (on paper and on a computer). Lab work is done to check cholesterol, inflammation and metabolic markers, as well as others. A physical assessment is also done for body mass index and waist-to-hip ratio. All are factors that could increase a patient's risk. Patients leave with recommendations for stress reduction, sleep management, exercise and sometimes medication, both prescription and over the counter (such as vitamins). Education is also a big part of the process, including an online program called Alzheimer's Universe, which offers short courses on Alzheimer's prevention and treatment. Patients return for follow-up every six months.”


INDUSTRY UPDATE

A June 23, 2015 Xconomy.com article reported that Accera, an early stage drug company, is pivoting from medial foods to Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “Accera, an early stage drug company based in Broomfield, CO, thinks it might have a winning strategy with its new drug candidate, AC-1204. Accera is moving beyond its origins as a “medical food” company and is remaking itself into a pharmaceutical company. It wants to use the expertise it developed creating a special supplement for Alzheimer’s patients to create what it says will be a first-of-its-kind drug that attacks Alzheimer’s in a new way. It’s a big step for the company, which since its founding in 2001 has raised about $155 million, according to its SEC filings. The money comes from investors such as Nestlé, the Swiss food company best known in the U.S. for its candy brands.”


RESEARCH, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY 

A June 24, 2015 Medical Xpress article reported on the link between word recognition and early Alzheimer’s diagnosis. According to the article, “Scientists say they have a better understanding of why people with Alzheimer's struggle to recognize and understand words - and their research has the potential to be developed into a test which could help clinicians make an early diagnosis…A test of word recognition based on the findings could contribute to diagnosis, Professor Andrew Ellis, from the Department of Psychology at York, said. He added: ‘The biggest potential impact is in diagnosis. It might be a useful addition to the armoury of clinicians trying to do diagnosis.’”