NEW TREATMENTS, TESTS FOR

ALZHEIMER'S IN PIPELINE
Ana Veciana-Suarez McClatchy Newspapers . The Post - Standard ; Syracuse, N.Y. [Syracuse, N.Y]10
May 2009: I.1.

ABSTRACT (ABSTRACT)

Spinal fluid. Researchers from the Alzheimers Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a
comprehensive projectthat helps researchers and clinicians develop treatments and monitor their
effectiveness, have developed a test tohelp diagnose the early stages of Alzheimers sooner and
more accurately by measuring two biomarkers tau andbeta-amyloid proteins in cerebrospinal
fluid. (Amyloid is the dangerous brain plaque found in Alzheimers patients,and tau forms tangles
within cells and may prevent neurons from communicating with each other.)

Alzheimers warnings Many people complain of memory lapses, but there is a difference between
Alzheimersdisease and forgetting where you left your keys. Absent-mindedness should not be
confused with Alzheimers. Ifyou are experiencing any of the 10 warning signs below, schedule
an appointment with your doctor. Memory lossDifficulty performing familiar tasks Problems
with language Disorientation to time and place Poor or decreasedjudgment Problems with
abstract thinking Misplacing things Changes in mood or behavior Changes in personalityLoss of
initiative Source: Alzheimers Association Alzheimers resources Here are some online resources
for furtherreading about Alzheimers disease and the hundreds of clinical trials being conducted
around the world: Alzheimers Association: national www.alz.org; Central New York Chapter
www.alz.org/centralnewyork, 472-4201 National Institute on Aging:
www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers Alzheimers Research Forum: www.alzforum.org Alzheimers
Foundation of America: www.alzfdn.org On television The Alzheimers Project is a three-night
HBO series that investigates the disease, research progress and its effect on families. For details,
visit www.hbo.com/alzheimers.

The Memory Loss Tapes, airs at 9 p.m. today. Grandpa, Do You Know Who I am? airs at 7:30
p.m. Monday. Momentum in Science, Part 1 airs at 8 p.m. Monday. Caregivers airs at 7 p.m.
Tuesday. Momentum in Science, Part 2 airs at 8 p.m. Tuesday. Spinal fluid. Researchers from
the Alzheimers Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a comprehensive project that helps
researchers and clinicians develop treatments and monitor their effectiveness, have developed a
test to help diagnose the early stages of Alzheimers sooner and more accurately by measuring
two biomarkers tau and beta-amyloid proteins in cerebrospinal fluid. (Amyloid is the dangerous
brain plaque found in Alzheimers patients, and tau forms tangles within cells and may prevent
neurons from communicating with each other.)
Current understanding of magnetic resonance imaging biomarkers and memory in
Alzheimer's disease.

Bayram E1, Caldwell JZK1, Banks SJ1.

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is caused by a cascade of changes to brain integrity. Neuroimaging

biomarkers are important in diagnosis and monitoring the effects of interventions. As memory
impairments are among the first symptoms of AD, the relationship between imaging findings and
memory deficits is important in biomarker research. The most established magnetic resonance
imaging (MRI) finding is hippocampal atrophy, which is related to memory decline and currently
used as a diagnostic criterion for AD. While the medial temporal lobes are impacted early by the
spread of neurofibrillary tangles, other networks and regional changes can be found quite early in
the progression. Atrophy in several frontal and parietal regions, cortical thinning, and white
matter alterations correlate with memory deficits in early AD. Changes in activation and
connectivity have been detected by functional MRI (fMRI). Task-based fMRI studies have
revealed medial temporal lobe hypoactivation, parietal hyperactivation, and frontal
hyperactivation in AD during memory tasks, and activation patterns of these regions are also
altered in preclinical and prodromal AD. Resting state fMRI has revealed alterations in default
mode network activity related to memory in early AD. These studies are limited in part due to
the historic inclusion of patients who had suspected AD but likely did not have the disorder.
Modern biomarkers allow for more diagnostic certainty, allowing better understanding of
neuroimaging markers in true AD, even in the preclinical stage. Larger patient cohorts,
comparison of candidate imaging biomarkers to more established biomarkers, and inclusion of
more detailed neuropsychological batteries to assess multiple aspects of memory are needed to
better understand the memory deficit in AD and help develop new biomarkers. This article
reviews MRI findings related to episodic memory impairments in AD and introduces a new
study with multimodal imaging and comprehensive neuropsychiatric evaluation to overcome
current limitations.
Alzheimer Disease - Future Therapy Based on Dendrimers.

Aliev G1, Ashraf GM2, Tarasov VV3, Chubarev VN3, Leszek J4, Gasiorowski K5, Makhmutovа A6,
Baeesa SS7, Avila-Rodriguez M8, Ustyugov AA6, Bachurin SO6.

Abstract

Alzheimer disease (AD) is characterized by the loss of neurons. It is the most common cause of
dementia in the elderly population accompanied by pathological degeneration of neurofibrillary
tangles. Senile plaques are formed with beta-amyloid, hyperphosphoryled tau protein,
apolipoprotein E and presenilin associated with protease activity [amyloid beta (Aβ), gamma-
secretase (γS)]. The molecular mechanisms of neurodegeneration include apoptosis, oxidative
shock (free radical generation), inflammation, immune activation, and others. The lack of
effective treatments for AD stems mainly from the incomplete understanding of causes of AD.
Currently, there are several hypotheses explaining the early mechanisms of AD pathogenesis.
Recent years witnessed an unprecedented research growth in the area of nanotechnology, which
uses atomic, molecular and macromolecular methods to create products in microscale
(nanoscale) dimensions. In this article, we have discussed the role of nanotechnology in the
development and improvement of techniques for early diagnosis and effective treatment of AD.
Since AD pathology is practically irreversible, applications of disease-modifying treatments
could be successful only if early diagnosis of AD is available. The current review article
highlights various possibilities for the diagnosis and therapy of AD, and investigates potential
adaptation of nanoparticles-dendrimers, a class of well-defined branched polymers, chemically
synthesized with a well-defined shape, size and nanoscopic physicochemical properties
reminiscent of the proteins for the treatment of neurodegenerative diseases.