MUST READS

A July 7, 2015 Politico article reported on NIH’s change of fortune on Capitol Hill. According to the article, “After a dozen years of flat funding, the National Institutes of Health has become a top target on Capitol Hill — not for less money but more, potentially billions more by 2020. It’s a remarkable turnaround for the huge medical research agency, one triggered by a confluence of circumstances. Fears that the United States is losing ground to international competitors in science and technology synched with lawmakers’ need to show frustrated voters that they can work in a bipartisan manner, and NIH offered ‘an easy win’ on both, advocates say…NIH funding ‘transcends where you sit on the political spectrum,’ said Sen. Jerry Moran, a member of the newly formed Senate NIH Caucus. It’s why the Kansas Republican can simultaneously call himself a ‘fiscal hawk’ and say that making the case for the institutes’ budget is “so easy.’ Republicans now talk about curing disease as a way of also curing government spending. ‘We can’t solve mandatory health spending problems without finding cures for Alzheimer’s, heart disease, cancer and diabetes,’ said Maryland Rep. Andy Harris. Key NIH allies like Sen. Dick Durbin have lobbied colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get to this point.”

A July 6, 2015 The San Diego Union-Tribune article reported on progress with San Diego’s efforts to combat Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “The county’s Alzheimer’s Project is kicking into gear on multiple fronts, including the impending launch of its most ambitious component — using San Diego research to develop a drug that could treat or cure the devastating disease…Work on the two other key focuses of the Alzheimer’s Project, clinical best practices and support for Alzheimer’s caregivers, is also progressing. Dr. Nick Yphantides, the county’s chief medical officer, said a group of neurologists, psychiatrists, family physicians and geriatric specialists has devised algorithms, or checklists of protocols, for diagnosing and treating Alzheimer’s. Members of the Alzheimer’s Project’s clinical round-table are in discussions with three medical groups in San Diego to participate in a pilot program.”

RESEARCH, SCIENCE, AND TECHNOLOGY

A July 6, 2015 The Guardian article reported that a “Breakthrough linking protein in blood to memory loss raises hopes for dementia treatment, and could be key to keeping people healthy for longer in old age.” According to the article, “Scientists found that injections of the protein made young animals’ memories worse and reduced the growth of new neurons in their brains. Further studies showed that blocking the protein prevented memory loss in older animals, making them smarter than untreated animals of the same age. The findings are the latest to come from researchers in the US who have shown in previous work that blood plasma taken from young animals can rejuvenate the muscles, brains and other tissues of older animals.”

A July 6, 2015 Medical News Today article reported that “researchers have discovered a new mechanism with which DNA is repaired that could lead to further developments in the treatment and prevention of neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer's disease.”

A July 6, 2015 Stanford Medicine News statement announced that “A new Stanford-based center will receive nearly $7.3 million in funding over a five-year period to conduct interdisciplinary research on Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders.”

HUMAN INTEREST

A July 6, 2015 The New York Times obituary reported that author John A. Williams died from complications of Alzheimer’s. According to the article, “Mr. Williams, whom the critic James L. de Jongh called “arguably the finest Afro-American novelist of his generation,” excelled in describing the inner lives of characters struggling to make sense of their experiences, their personal relationships and their place in a hostile society. His manifest gifts, however, earned him at best a twilight kind of fame — a reputation for being chronically underrated.”