CLINICAL TRIAL SPOTLIGHT

A February 11, 2020 WMC 5 broadcast segment spotlighted Brigham and Women’s Hospital neurologist Dr. Reisa Sperling, who is steering the A4 clinical trial effort. The trial is testing the antibody solanezumab, which clears amyloid from the brain in the hopes of preventing Alzheimer’s disease. “I think our research suggests that we need to go earlier and we need to not give up hope, not back down, but in fact to double down and to work harder on this disease so that it does not defeat us,” said Sperling.

RESEARCH AND SCIENCE

A February 11, 2020 Winston-Salem Journal article focused on a $2.53 million NIH-grant at Wake Forest Baptist Health to study microtubules. Degeneration of microtubules is linked to cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease. According to the article, “Researchers will inject the microtubule PET tracer in healthy and Alzheimer’s mice and scan their brains at two-month intervals. The imaging tracer are hypothesized to bind only to those microtubules that are intact. The tracer’s lack of binding, conversely, should indicate that the microtubules have deteriorated and the onset of disease has begun.”

DEMENTIA AND THE ARTS

A February 11, 2020 Vice article focused on the work of seven photographers depicting Alzheimer’s disease, dementia and memory loss. Photographer and curator Jon Feinstein was inspired by the work of many fellow photographers while researching his own project, "Breathers." According to the article, “The following artists use photography to understand, process, and cope with their experience of Alzheimer's, as well as dementia and other forms of memory loss. Some face it with a direct, documentary-style approach, while others use still life, abstraction, and other devices as visual metaphors.”

EVENTS AND RESOURCES

A February 10, 2020 WLOX article spotlighted a new chat line from the Alzheimer’s Foundation of America (AFA) which can provide assistance to families affected by Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia-related illnesses in 90 languages. It can be accessed on the AFA’s website, or by texting 646-586-5283.

NOTE FROM USA2

Alzheimer's Dailies will not publish on Monday, February 17, 2020 in observance of Presidents' Day.