MUST READS

According to an April 5, 2020 NIH National Institute on Aging article, a new report combined data from studies in the US, Europe, Canada and Australia, with data from the Frontotemporal Dementia Prevention Initiative. The report looked at the role of genetics and family history relating to the age of onset, and duration of, frontotemporal dementia. According to the article, “Understanding the causes of variation in age of onset could provide important clues about what causes FTD. The data also could help inform efforts to test interventions early, before symptoms appear, and to track people as they transition from asymptomatic to symptomatic.”

RESEARCH AND SCIENCE

An April 3, 2020 News Medical Life Sciences article referenced a preclinical study which focused on imidazoline receptors I2, which are altered in the brain of people with Alzheimer’s disease, and may be good pharmacological targets. According to the article, “The new study states that the specific union between a representative molecule of the new family of ligands and the imidazoline I2 receptors produces an improvement of protein markers related to neuroprotector processes in the treated animal models. Also, there is a cognitive improvement in behavior studies and in parameters associated with neuroinflammation and oxidative stress in the model 5xFAD (murine model with family Alzheimer’s).”

SEX MATTERS

An April 6, 2020 Medical Xpress article focused on the work of researchers at the Yale School of Medicine's Department of Neurology to understand sex-differences in single cells, and how they may relate to developing Alzheimer’s disease. Research of this kind could contribute to sex-specific treatment of AD. According to the article, “Drs. Zhang and Strittmatter will study the cells in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) of patients with AD to identify potential genetic shifts in the immune system between the sexes and aid in disease diagnosis and monitoring. This will provide the first full accounting of all the genetic activity at the single-cell level across the central nervous system in Alzheimer's disease, potentially shedding light on why women experience more severe symptoms and helping to develop sex-specific targets for treatment.”

EVENTS AND RESOURCES

An April 3, 2020 Discipleship Ministries article spoke of the importance of faith communities not forgetting those who have dementia. According to the article, “The church has the opportunity to help people living with dementia say what they want us all to hear: “See me, not my dementia.” Or perhaps it is fear of the unknown that keeps us away and that keeps us from recognizing how desperately both the people who live with dementia and those who are loving someone through this illness need our support, our visits, and our kindnesses.”