Gum disease link to Alzheimer's, research suggests

Gum disease has been linked to a greater rate of cognitive decline in people with Alzheimer's disease, early stage research has suggested.

The small study, published in PLOS ONE, looked at 59 people who were all deemed to have mild to moderate dementia.

It is thought the body's response to gum inflammation may be hastening the brain's decline.

The Alzheimer's Society said if the link was proven to be true, then good oral health may help slow dementia.

The body's response to inflammatory conditions was cited as a possible reason for the quicker decline.

Inflammation causes immune cells to swell and has long been associated with Alzheimer's. Researchers believe their findings add weight to evidence that inflammation in the brain is what drives the disease.

The study, jointly led by the University of Southampton and King's College London, cognitively assessed the participants, and took blood samples to measure inflammatory markers in their blood.

Their oral health was also assessed by a dental hygienist who was unaware of the cognitive outcomes.

Of the sample group, 22 were found to have considerable gum disease while for the remaining 37 patients the disease was much less apparent. The average age of the group with gum disease was 75, and in the other group it was 79.

A majority of participants - 52 - were followed up at six months, and all assessments were repeated.

The presence of gum disease - or periodontitis as it is known - was associated with a six-fold increase in the rate of cognitive decline, the study suggested. 

View study here: Periodontitis and Cognitive Decline in Alzheimer’s Disease

View more on BBC/Health

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New research centre launched to tackle dementia epidemic

A major new research centre was launched recently by Trinity College Dublin and the University of California to try to tackle the looming dementia epidemic.

The Global Brain Health Institute will be funded by a €138.4m donation from Atlantic Philanthropies - the biggest philanthropic donation in Irish history.

Affecting more than 48 million people around the world, dementia is fast becoming a major health challenge, with the numbers suffering from it expected to double every 20 years.

Experts say while no effective treatment has yet been found, public health measures tackling risk factors like high blood pressure, cholesterol and lifestyle issues could reduce the numbers developing the condition in the coming decades.

Researchers at Trinity College Dublin have formed an alliance with colleagues at the University of California, to establish the Global Brain Health Institute.

The centre aims to tackle the growing incidence of dementia by creating a generation of leaders around the world with skills to change attitudes, policy and care and carry out research.

Over the next 15 years, the institute will give multidisciplinary training to 600 fellows and scholars from around the world.

View more here on TCD/News

Ireland has ‘fastest rising need’ for palliative care in Europe

Rapidly-ageing Irish population behind trend, new study suggests

Ireland has the fastest rising need for palliative care in Europe due to its rapidly ageing population, a new study suggests.

Significant increases in funding will be needed to cater for the increase in deaths from cancer, dementia and neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s, according to the study published by British and Irish researchers in the Journal of Pain and Symptom Management.

Eighty per cent of the deaths recorded between 2007 and 2011 were from conditions recognised as having associated palliative care needs. This compares to 63 per cent in the UK and 50 per cent in Australia.

The study shows that while deaths from cancer increased by 9.5 per cent over this period, the increase in deaths caused by dementia and neurodegenerative diseases was far greater, as 51 per cent and 43 per cent respectively. In contrast, deaths from heart and respiratory disease, and stroke, are falling.

It says new models of palliative care may be required to address these trends. Current funding levels are running at only half the required amount.  

“It is internationally recognised that the prevalence of advanced chronic conditions such as cancer, dementia and neurodegenerative disease, which have recognised palliative care needs, increases with older age,” said lead author Dr Pauline Kane of King’s College London. “With Ireland’s population ageing at the fastest rate in Europe, this palliative care need will continue to grow.

View more here

Scientists identify drug that could block multiple sclerosis

Prof Luke O’Neill with flasks of inflamed white blood cells from the immune system in a laboratory in Trinity. 

Tests reveal remedy could also halt diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and alzheimer’s

Researchers in Dublin have led an international study identifying a remarkable drug that may be able to block major diseases such as multiple sclerosis (MS), alzheimer’s, rheumatoid arthritis and most other inflammatory conditions.

Initial tests show it could instantly block MS and the effects of blood poisoning in mouse models. It also halted a rare inflammatory disease called Muckle-Wells syndrome using human blood samples as a test.

Muckle-Wells syndrome is a disorder characterised by episodes of skin rash, fever and joint pain. Progressive hearing loss and kidney damage also occur with this illness.

The drug, called MCC950, stops a very early trigger that sets off the inflammatory response to infection. While inflammation is good during infections it can cause a wide range of serious diseases if the inflammation remains in place.

“This is exciting, one of the biggest discoveries we have had,” said Prof Luke O’Neill, the chairman ofbiochemistry based in the Trinity Biomedical Sciences Institute. “It is fantastic, the thing we have been looking for for 30 years. This could be the missing compound.”

Their main discovery is being able to identify the pathway that allows the drug to block the action of a pro-inflammatory substance in the body called NLRP3.

They also confirmed that inflammatory diseases all share a common process, even though the parts of the body becoming inflamed might differ, he said.

Trinity’s collaborators included the Universities of Queensland, Michigan, Massachusetts and Bonn and their findings were published on Monday in the journal Nature Medicine. He was co-senior author with Prof Matt Cooper of Queensland, and lead author was Dr Rebecca Coll who worked with Prof O’Neill.

Journal Reference: A small-molecule inhibitor of the NLRP3 inflammasome for the treatment of inflammatory diseases.Nature Medicine, 2015; DOI: 10.1038/nm.3806

View more here on Irish Times/Science

International imaging effort unlocks brain secrets

Cortex and subcortical regions: The study looked at the size of sub-cortical brain regions that are involved in some basic functions such as memory, movement, learning and motivation.

 New insights may help scientists better understand disorders such as schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy

An international study, which included researchers from NUI Galway, has identified significant genetic factors that influence the size of structures within the brain. It is hoped these new insights may help scientists better understand disorders such as schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease and epilepsy. The research was published today in Nature magazine.

NUI Galway professor of psychology, Professor Gary Donohoe, led the Irish contribution to the study, which involved a consortium of almost 300 scientists from 193 institutes - including NUI Galway. The consortium, known as the ENIGMA (Enhancing Neuro Imaging Genetics through Meta-Analysis), shared results from analyses of genetic data and MRI scans from more than 30,000 individuals worldwide.

The study looked at the size of sub-cortical brain regions that are involved in some basic functions such as memory, movement, learning and motivation. Abnormalities in these brain regions are associated with neurological and mental health disorders.

Read more here

The article published in Nature today is ‘Common genetic variants influence human subcortical brain structures’.

This research at NUI Galway was undertaken by the Cognitive Genetics and Therapy Group (Principal Investigators: Prof Gary Donohoe and Dr Derek Morris;http://www.nuigalway.ie/psychology/coggene_group.html) and the Clinical Neuroimaging Laboratory (Principal Investigators: Prof Colm McDonald and Dr Dara Cannon;http://clinicalneuroimaginglaboratory.com/).

More information about the ENIGMA project is available at http://enigma.ini.usc.edu/

Dementia study questions advice on taking supplements

Taking vitamin B12 and folic acid supplements does not seem to cut the risk of developing dementia in healthy people, say Dutch researchers.

In one of the largest studies to date, there was no difference in memory test scores between those who had taken the supplements for two years and those who were given a placebo.

The research was published in the journal Neurology.

B vitamins have been linked to Alzheimer's for some years, and scientists know that higher levels of a body chemical called homocysteine can raise the risk of both strokes and dementia.

Vitamin B12 and folic acid are both known to lower levels of homocysteine.

Study leader Dr Rosalie Dhonukshe-Rutten, from Wageningen University in the Netherlands, said: "Since homocysteine levels can be lowered with folic acid and vitamin B12 supplements, the hope has been that taking these vitamins could also reduce the risk of memory loss and Alzheimer's disease.

"While the homocysteine levels decreased by more in the group taking the B vitamins than in the group taking the placebo, unfortunately there was no difference between the two groups in the scores on the thinking and memory tests."

Dr Eric Karran, director of research at Alzheimer's Research UK, said: Longer follow-up periods would be needed to see if vitamin B12 or folic acid could slow the severe memory decline associated with dementia. 

 He added: "Although this study casts doubt on the use of vitamin B or folic acid supplements to aid memory, a balanced diet is a good way to keep healthy at all ages.

"Evidence suggests that we can maintain a healthy brain for longer by keeping a healthy weight, eating a balanced diet, not smoking, staying active, drinking in moderation and keeping blood pressure and cholesterol in check."

View more here

University's study of eyeball link to Alzheime'rs

Researchers at Dundee University are to lead a £1.1m study into whether eye tests can reveal the onset of Alzheimer's disease.

A team from the university's school of computing will carry out the three-year study with colleagues in Edinburgh.

Evidence suggests changes to veins and arteries in the eye could be linked to diseases including stroke and cardiovascular disease.

The team will study if this could act as an "early warning" of Alzheimer's.

The new study uses specially-developed computer software to analyse high-definition images of the eye from multiple instruments to establish whether such changes in the eye could act as an early indicator of Alzheimer's disease.

Emanuele Trucco, professor of computational vision at the school of computing, is leading the project.

He said: "If you can look into someone's eyes using an inexpensive machine and discover something which may suggest a risk of developing dementia, then that's a very interesting proposition.

"There is the promise of early warning in a non-invasive way and there is also the fact that we even might be able to use the test to differentiate between different types of dementia."

View full report on BBC/Health

Dementia Facebook app to raise awareness of the illness

Facebook users are being invited to experience what it is like to live with dementia in a bid to raise greater awareness about the disease.

The FaceDementia app, by Alzheimer's Research UK, "takes over" personal Facebook pages, and temporarily erases important memories, mimicking how dementia affects the brain.

People can also watch short videos featuring people affected by dementia explaining what impact the symptoms, simulated by FaceDementia, have had on them or their relative.

Rebecca Wood, chief executive of Alzheimer's Research UK, said: "Facebook's appeal is that it can gather your friends and family and keep them close, with memories and contacts all contained within one space. It also develops a diary of your life since you joined the site and documents your thoughts and musings during that time.

"We wanted to use these Facebook features to illustrate how those thoughts and memories can be confused, or forgotten altogether, as experienced by some of the hundreds of thousands of people living with dementia."

"Stigma around dementia is due in part to a lack of public awareness and understanding, so FaceDementia will be invaluable in helping people better understand the condition."

View more information here

Blood test offers hope on dementia

Scientists have developed a new blood test that could detect whether or not a person will develop dementia within three years.

Changes in the blood may signify Alzheimer's disease in its earliest stages, researchers found.

A new study, published in the journal Nature Medicine, identified ten molecules in blood that could be used to predict, with at least 90% accuracy, whether people will go on to develop mild cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease.

It is the first research that has been able to show differences in biomarkers in the blood between people with Alzheimer's disease before the symptoms occur and people who will not go on to develop the condition.

The finding has potential for developing treatment strategies for Alzheimer's at an earlier stage, when therapy would be more effective at slowing or preventing the onset of symptoms, the authors said.

Researchers from Georgetown University Medical Centre in the US examined 525 healthy participants aged 70 and over and monitored them for five years.

During the research, 28 participants went on to develop the conditions and 46 were diagnosed at the start of the study.

Mid-way through the research, the authors analysed 53 patients who already had one of the conditions and 53 "cognitively normal" people.

They discovered ten molecules that appeared to "reveal the breakdown of neural cell membranes in participants who develop symptoms of cognitive impairment or Alzheimer's disease".  View more information on RTE/Health here

Plasma phospholipids identify antecedent memory impairment in older adults, Nature Medicine (2014)doi:10.1038/nm.3466 Published online 09 March 2014

NUI Galway Hold Public Information Event for Brain Awareness Week

As part of the international Brain Awareness Week, staff and students of NUI Galway’s Neuroscience Centre are organising a public information exhibit in the Aula Maxima, Quadrangle on Tuesday, 11 and Wednesday, 12 March from 9am to 3.30pm.

Members of the public and children from local schools will have the opportunity to visit the exhibit to learn more about how the brain and nervous system work. 

The exhibit consists of interactive displays where visitors can learn more about the nervous system in a hands-on way.  For example, there will be various puzzles and tests of hand-eye coordination, visual perception, left/right handedness, creativity and many others.

Approximately 180 million Europeans are thought to suffer from a brain disorder, at a total cost of almost €800 billion per annum. 

At the event in NUI Galway general information about the brain will be available to visitors with the opportunity to learn more about brain disorders, via a series of large information posters prepared by the staff and postgraduate students of NUI Galway Neuroscience Centre. The posters cover a variety of illnesses including: Epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, Pain, Anxiety, Depression, Schizophrenia, Alzheimer’s disease, Stroke, Brain injury and Spinal cord injury.

Read more here

Short films tackle stigma of memory loss

Researchers at Trinity College Dublin have developed a series of online videos to allay fears about memory loss, promote brain health and tackle the stigma associated with dementia.

The animated films address common concerns about the effects of memory loss and dementia.

There are more than 41,000 people living with dementia and in three decades' time it is predicted that figure will rise to over 140,000.

According to the researchers on the Neuro-Enhancement for Independent Lives (NEIL) programme at Trinity's Institute of Neuroscience, stigma associated with dementia prevents open discussion of the condition and encourages the false belief that nothing can be done for people with dementia and their families.

The films tackle common worries about memory loss and dementia and provide advice about how to improve brain health.

Topics covered in the films include: When should I be concerned about my memory? What can you do to keep your brain healthy? And what is the difference between Alzheimer's and Dementia?

The FreeDem films project has been co-funded by GENIO, an independent, non-profit organisation based in Ireland.

The videos are available to view for free online at freedemliving.com and are also available on DVD.

Preserving brain health

People with higher levels of the omega-3 fatty acids found in fish oil may also have larger brain volumes in old age equivalent to preserving one-to-two years of brain health, according to a study published in the January 22, 2014, online issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

Shrinking brain volume is a sign of Alzheimer’s disease, as well as normal aging.

For the study, the levels of omega-3 fatty acids EPA+DHA in red blood cells were tested in 1,111 women who were part of the Women’s Health Initiative Memory Study. Eight years later, when the women were an average age of 78, MRI scans were taken to measure their brain volume.

Those with higher levels of omega-3s had larger total brain volumes eight years later. Those with twice as high levels of fatty acids (7.5 vs 3.4 per cent) had a 0.7 per cent larger brain volume.

“These higher levels of fatty acids can be achieved through diet and the use of supplements, and the results suggest that the effect on brain volume is the equivalent of delaying the normal loss of brain cells that comes with ageing by one-to-two years,” said study author James Pottala, PhD, of the University of South Dakota in Sioux Falls and Health Diagnostic Laboratory Inc in Richmond, VA, in the US.

Those with higher levels of omega-3s also had a 2.7 per cent larger volume in the hippocampus area of the brain, which plays an important role in memory.

In Alzheimer’s disease, the hippocampus begins to atrophy even before symptoms appear.

View abstract here: ‘Higher RBC EPA + DHA corresponds with larger total brain and hippocampal volumes.’

Decrease in prevelance of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease in the past 20 years

People are less likely to experience dementia and Alzheimer’s disease today than they were 20 years ago — and those who do may be developing it later in life — says a new perspective article in the New England Journal of Medicine that examines the positive trends in dementia.

The authors examined five recent studies that suggest a decrease in the prevalence of dementia, crediting the positive trend to improvements in education levels, healthcare and lifestyle.

“We’re very encouraged to see a growing number of studies from around the world that suggest that the risk of dementia may be falling due to rising levels of education and better prevention and treatment of key cardiovascular risk factors such as high blood pressure and cholesterol,” says co-author Kenneth Langa, MD., PhD., a Professor of Internal Medicine at the U-M Medical School and research investigator at the Center for Clinical Management Research (CCMR), VA Ann Arbor Healthcare System.

The authors point to two key factors that may explain the decreased risk of dementia over the past few decades: People are completing more years of school, which helps the brain fight off dementia; and there’s more awareness and focus on preventing heart disease, another big risk factor for Alzheimer’s.

Click here to view Study in the New England Journal of Medicine

Read press release here in the Irish Medical Times

44m living with dementia worldwide - study

The number of people living with dementia worldwide is set to treble by 2050. A new analysis by experts at the charity Alzheimer's Disease International says 44 million people live with the disease, but that figure will increase to 135 million by 2050.The figures were released ahead of a G8 dementia summit in London next week. 

The report 'The Global Imact of Dementia 2013-2050' says most governments are "woefully unprepared for the dementia epidemic". Alzheimer's Disease International expects increasing life expectancies to drive a surge in cases in poor and middle-income countries, particularly in South East Asia and Africa.

View report here 
Click here to view RTE press release

Reminiscence therapy for Alzheimer’s disease wins Clinical Innovation Award 2013

A software reminiscence therapy for sufferers of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia called Rempad has won the Clinical Innovation Award 2013, sponsored by Enterprise Ireland and Cleveland Clinic.

Julia O’Rourke, a senior speech and language therapist, was presented with the award by the Minister for Jobs, Enterprise and Innovation, Richard Bruton at the Enterprise Ireland Med in Ireland event in Dublin last week.

Rempad is a new software tool which uses multi-media content to connect carers and residents with memories from the past to enhance the overall wellbeing of nursing home residents suffering from Alzheimer’s.

O’Rourke collaborated with the Adelaide and Meath Hospital and researchers at CLARITY in Dublin City University to develop Rempad.

There are 35 million people living with dementia worldwide, and this will triple by 2050. Rempad’s reminiscence therapy software uses historical artifacts such as photos and broadcast footage to stimulate memories from the past and help individuals or groups to communicate.

Congratulating Julia on her award, Enterprise Ireland CEO designate Julie Sinnamon said, “The potential social and economic benefits of Rempad are clear. As a speech and language therapist, Julia has co-developed this software with the end-user in mind and has shown great determination in getting the technology in to nursing homes to benefit residents with dementia."

Click here to view full article

Landmark discovery 'could hold key to Alzheimer's treatment'

The discovery of the first chemical to prevent the death of brain tissue in a neurodegenerative disease has been hailed as an exciting and historic moment in medical research.

More work is needed to develop a drug that could be taken by patients.But scientists say a resulting medicine could treat Alzheimer's, Parkinson's, Huntington's and other diseases.  In tests on mice, the University of Leicester showed all brain cell death from prion disease could be prevented.

The study, published in Science Translational Medicine, showed mice with prion disease developed severe memory and movement problems. They died within 12 weeks. However, those given the compound showed no sign of brain tissue wasting away.

A 'landmark' study

Commenting on the research Prof Roger Morris, from King's College London, said: "This finding, I suspect, will be judged by history as a turning point in the search for medicines to control and prevent Alzheimer's Disease."

Click here to view the study

Click here  to view the article