Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Mri Investigations Of Metabolic And Structural Brain Changes In Alzheimer’S Disease And Vitamin D Deprivation, Dickson Wong

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder of the brain that presents as progressive impairment across several cognitive domains. The biological mechanisms underlying the development of AD remain unclear, with amyloid-beta plaques, neurofibrillary tangles, calcium dysregulation, and oxidative stress all contributing to neurodegeneration in AD. Vitamin D (VitD) deficiency, a common condition in the elderly, may modulate these mechanisms and complicate the AD process. Due to this complicated pathogenesis, the diagnosis of AD requires subjective clinical judgement, staging of AD is challenging, and it remains difficult to predict when and who will progress to AD. The purpose of this thesis …

Diabetes-Related Amylin Dyshomeostasis: A Contributing Factor To Cerebrovascular Pathology And Dementia, Han Ly, Florin Despa

Pharmacology and Nutritional Sciences Faculty Publications

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) increases the risk for cerebrovascular disease (CVD) and dementia. The underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive, which hampers the development of treatment or/and effective prevention strategies. Recent studies suggest that dyshomeostasis of amylin, a satiety hormone that forms pancreatic amyloid in patients with T2D, promotes accumulation of amylin in cerebral small blood vessels and interaction with Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology. Overexpression of human amylin in rodents (rodent amylin does not form amyloid) leads to late-life onset T2D and neurologic deficits. In this Review, we discuss clinical evidence of amylin pathology in CVD and AD and identify critical …

Using Genetic Diversity To Understand Susceptibility To Cognitive Decline In Aging And Alzheimer’S Disease, Sarah M. Neuner

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

An individual's genetic makeup plays an important role in determining susceptibility to cognitive aging and transition to dementia such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Identifying the specific genetic variants that contribute to cognitive aging and AD may aid in early diagnosis of at-risk patients, as well as identify novel therapeutics targets to treat or prevent development of symptoms. Challenges to identifying these specific genes in human studies include complex genetics, difficulty in controlling environmental factors, and limited access to human brain tissue. Here, we turned to genetically diverse mice from the BXD genetic reference panel (GRP) to overcome some of the …

Can Self-Efficacy Training Improve Memory And Functional Activation In Older Adults With Mild Cognitive Impairment? A Proof-Of-Concept Intervention Study, Brainscan, Western University, Lindsay Nagamatsu, Derek Mitchell, Paul Minda, Amer Burhan, Becky Horst

Project Summaries

The goal of this study is to examine the changes in brain activity after a memory self-efficacy training program to better understand the mechanisms of memory self-efficacy. We will conduct a proof-of-concept six-week memory self-efficacy intervention in older adults with MCI, in order to demonstrate that self-efficacy impacts brain function. This will allow us to determine whether self-efficacy interventions may be a potential strategy for combating AD in the future.

Perspectives On Ethnic And Racial Disparities In Alzheimer's Disease And Related Dementias: Update And Areas Of Immediate Need, Ganesh M. Babulal, Yakeel T. Quiroz, Benedict C. Albensi, Eider Arenaza-Urquijo, Arlene J. Astell, Claudio Babiloni, Alex Bahar-Fuchs, Joanne Bell, Gene L. Bowman, Adam M. Brickman, Gael Chetelat, Carrie Ciro, Ann D. Cohen, Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, Hiroko H. Dodge, Simone Dreux, Steven Edland, Anna Esbensen, Lisbeth Evered, Michael Ewers, Keith N. Fargo, Juan Fortea, Hector Gonzalez, Deborah R. Gustafson, Elizabeth Head, James A. Hendrix, Scott M. Hofer, Leigh A. Johnson, Roos Jutten, Kerry Kilborn, Krista L. Lanctot, Jennifer J. Manly, Ralph N. Martins, Michelle M. Mielke, Martha Clare Morris, Melissa E. Murray, Esther S. Oh, Mario A. Parra, Robert A. Rissman, Catherine M. Roe, Octavio A. Santos, Nikolaos Scarmeas, Lon S. Schneider, Nicole Schupf, Sietske Sikkes, Heather M. Snyder, Hamid R. Sohrabi, Yaakov Stern, Andre Strydom, Yi Tang, Graciela Muniz Terrera Muniz Terrera, Yaakov Stern, Andre Strydom, Yi Tang, Graciela Muniz Terrera, Charlotte Teunissen, Debora Melo Van Lent, Michael Weinborn, Linda Wesselman, Donna M. Wilcock, Henrik Zetterberg, Sid E. O’Bryant, International Society To Advance Alzheimer’S Research And Treatment, Alzheimer’S Association

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRDs) are a global crisis facing the aging population and society as a whole. With the numbers of people with ADRDs predicted to rise dramatically across the world, the scientific community can no longer neglect the need for research focusing on ADRDs among underrepresented ethnoracial diverse groups. The Alzheimer's Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTAART; alz.org/ISTAART) comprises a number of professional interest areas (PIAs), each focusing on a major scientific area associated with ADRDs. We leverage the expertise of the existing international cadre of ISTAART scientists and experts to synthesize a …

Decrease In P3-Alcb37 And P3-Alcb40, Products Of Alcadein B Generated By G-Secretase Cleavages, In Aged Monkeys And Patients With Alzheimer’S Disease, Saori Hata, Chiori Omori, Ayano Kimura, Haruka Saito, Nobuyuki Kimura, Veer Gupta, Steve Pedrini, Eugene Hone, Pratishtha Chatterjee, Kevin Taddei, Kensaku Kasuga, Takeshi Ikeuchi, Masaaki Waragai, Masaki Nishimura, Anqi Hu, Tadashi Nakaya, Laurent Meijer, Masahiro Maeda, Tohru Yamamoto, Colin L. Masters, Chris C. Rowe, David Ames, Kazuo Yamamoto, Ralph N. Martins, Sam Gandy, Toshiharu Suzuki

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Introduction Neuronal p3-Alcβ peptides are generated from the precursor protein Alcadein β (Alcβ) through cleavage by α- and γ-secretases of the amyloid β (Aβ) protein precursor (APP). To reveal whether p3-Alcβ is involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD) contributes for the development of novel therapy and/or drug targets. Methods We developed new sandwich enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (sELISA) systems to quantitate levels of p3-Alcβ in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF). Results In monkeys, CSF p3-Alcβ decreases with age, and the aging is also accompanied by decreased brain expression of Alcβ. In humans, CSF p3-Alcβ levels decrease to a greater extent in those with …

Pathological Tau As A Cause, And Consequence, Of Cellular Dysfunction, Shelby Meier

Theses and Dissertations--Physiology

Tauopathies are a group of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the abnormal deposition of the protein tau, a microtubule stabilizing protein. Under normal physiological conditions tau is a highly soluble protein that is not prone to aggregation. In disease states alterations to tau lead to enhanced fibril formation and aggregation, eventually forming neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs). The exact cause for NFT deposition is unknown, but increased post-translational modifications and mutations to the tau gene can increase tangle formation.

Tauopathic brains are stuck in a detrimental cycle, with cellular dysfunction contributing to the development of tau pathology and the development of tau pathology …