Lab-grown mini brains may predict which Alzheimer’s treatments will work

Miniature brain models grown from patients’ cells revealed striking differences in how Alzheimer’s-related tissue responds to an antidepressant. The organoids and the particles they release could eventually guide more personalized treatments and provide new clues for diagnosing the disease.


http://dlvr.it/TV80G9

A major Alzheimer’s risk gene may shrink brain cells years before symptoms

Researchers have uncovered a possible reason why the Alzheimer’s risk gene APOE4 can disrupt the brain long before memory problems begin. In mice, APOE4 increased a protein called Nell2, shrinking neurons and making memory circuits unusually active. That early hyperactivity predicted worse memory later in life. Reducing Nell2 in adult mice reversed the abnormal changes, raising hopes for a new way to intervene before Alzheimer’s progresses.


http://dlvr.it/TV7yCD

Hiring a Private Caregiver Presents an Administrative Burden, but There’s Help

Dear Carol: We’ve used caregivers through an agency for my mom who has dementia, but locally they are all short-staffed and unreliable....


The post Hiring a Private Caregiver Presents an Administrative Burden, but There’s Help appeared first on Minding Our Elders.
             

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http://dlvr.it/TV7klK

This shark can live 400 years. Its eyes barely seem to age

Greenland sharks may live for 400 years without suffering the kind of retinal decline normally associated with aging. Researchers found healthy eye tissue and active proteins specially adapted for seeing blue light in the dim Arctic depths. DNA repair mechanisms may help keep their eyes functioning across centuries. The discovery could eventually offer new clues for protecting human vision as we age.


http://dlvr.it/TV7bDw

Schizophrenia’s lost brain connections follow a surprising pattern

Specialized brain scans reveal that schizophrenia is linked to widespread loss of the synapses that connect brain cells, with the left side of the brain hit especially hard. The damage follows a surprisingly organized pattern tied to the brain’s chemistry and wiring. Researchers also identified a left frontal region that may serve as a starting point for the loss.


http://dlvr.it/TV7QWP