Dementia Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Dementia, including details on symptoms, alzheimers, senile dementia, causes.

Grape-derived polyphenolics prevent Abeta oligomerization and attenuate cognitive deterioration in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease.

Wang J, Ho L, Zhao W, Ono K, Rosensweig C, Chen L, Humala N, Teplow DB, Pasinetti GM

Department of Psychiatry, Mount Sinai School of Medicine, New York, New York 10029, USA.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by progressive impairments in memory and cognition. Extracellular accumulation of soluble high-molecular-weight (HMW) Abeta oligomers has been proposed to be largely responsible for AD dementia and memory deficits in the Tg2576 mice, a model of AD. In this study, we found that a naturally derived grape seed polyphenolic extract can significantly inhibit amyloid beta-protein aggregation into high-molecular-weight oligomers in vitro. When orally administered to Tg2576 mice, this polyphenolic preparation significantly attenuates AD-type cognitive deterioration coincidentally with reduced HMW soluble oligomeric Abeta in the brain. Our study suggests that grape seed-derived polyphenolics may be useful agents to prevent or treat AD.

Published 19 June 2008 in J Neurosci, 28(25): 6388-92.
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Articles on Dementia published 19 June 2008:

Drugs with anticholinergic properties as a risk factor for psychosis in patients affected by Alzheimer's disease.   Clin Pharmacol Ther, 84(1): 63-8.

Emerging evidence suggests that psychosis in persons with Alzheimer's disease (AD) may be linked to the cholinergic deficit associated with the disease. This study sought to evaluate whether anticholinergic (ACH) drugs could be a risk factor for psychosis onset. A total of 230 patients affected with probable AD were recruited. Data on behavioral and psychological symptoms were collected using the Neuropsychiatric Inventory, and diagnosis of psychosis was performed. Patients were divided into ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Dementia published 18 June 2008:

Cognitive declines following bilateral subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation for the treatment of Parkinson's disease.   J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry, 79(7): 789-95.

BACKGROUND: We investigated the cognitive and psychiatric outcome 6 months after bilateral subthalamic nucleus deep brain stimulation (DBS) for the treatment of Parkinson's disease (PD) using a disease control group. METHODS: 23 patients who underwent DBS were compared with 28 medically treated patients with PD at baseline and at 6 months for neuropsychological measures. In addition to the group outcomes, we report reliable change indices (RCI) and a dementia caseness analysis. RESULTS: ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Dementia published 16 June 2008:

Effectiveness of nonpharmacological interventions in delaying the institutionalization of patients with dementia: a meta-analysis.   J Am Geriatr Soc, 56(6): 1116-28.

Contemporary healthcare policies are designed to shape the conditions that can help delay the institutionalization of patients with dementia. This can be done by developing support programs that minimize healthcare risks for the patients with dementia and their informal caregivers. Many support programs have been developed, and some of them are effective, but there has been no systematic review with a meta-analysis of all types of nonpharmacological support programs with odds of ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Dementia published 13 June 2008:

Full-length human mutant huntingtin with a stable polyglutamine repeat can elicit progressive and selective neuropathogenesis in BACHD mice.   J Neurosci, 28(24): 6182-95.

To elucidate the pathogenic mechanisms in Huntington's disease (HD) elicited by expression of full-length human mutant huntingtin (fl-mhtt), a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC)-mediated transgenic mouse model (BACHD) was developed expressing fl-mhtt with 97 glutamine repeats under the control of endogenous htt regulatory machinery on the BAC. BACHD mice exhibit progressive motor deficits, neuronal synaptic dysfunction, and late-onset selective neuropathology, which includes significant ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Relationships between hippocampal atrophy, white matter disruption, and gray matter hypometabolism in Alzheimer's disease.   J Neurosci, 28(24): 6174-81.

In early Alzheimer's disease (AD), the hippocampal region is the area most severely affected by cellular and structural alterations, yet glucose hypometabolism predominates in the posterior association cortex and posterior cingulate gyrus. One prevalent hypothesis to account for this discrepancy is that posterior cingulate hypometabolism results from disconnection from the hippocampus through disruption of the cingulum bundle. However, only partial and indirect evidence currently supports this ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Dementia published 11 June 2008:

Effect of bright light and melatonin on cognitive and noncognitive function in elderly residents of group care facilities: a randomized controlled trial.   JAMA, 299(22): 2642-55.

CONTEXT: Cognitive decline, mood, behavioral and sleep disturbances, and limitations of activities of daily living commonly burden elderly patients with dementia and their caregivers. Circadian rhythm disturbances have been associated with these symptoms. OBJECTIVE: To determine whether the progression of cognitive and noncognitive symptoms may be ameliorated by individual or combined long-term application of the 2 major synchronizers of the circadian timing system: bright light and melatonin. ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Social network, cognitive function, and dementia incidence among elderly women.   Am J Public Health, 98(7): 1221-7.

OBJECTIVES: We examined whether social networks had a protective association with incidence of dementia among elderly women. METHODS: We prospectively studied 2249 members of a health maintenance organization who were 78 years or older, were classified as free of dementia in 2001, and had completed at least 1 follow-up interview in 2002 through 2005. We used the Telephone Interview for Cognitive Status-modified, the Telephone Dementia Questionnaire, and medical record review to assess cognitive ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

Articles on Dementia published 10 June 2008:

Microbleed topography, leukoaraiosis, and cognition in probable Alzheimer disease from the Sunnybrook dementia study.   Arch Neurol, 65(6): 790-5.

BACKGROUND: Microbleeds are hemosiderin deposits around small vessels and are well visualized with T2*-weighted gradient-recalled echo (GRE) imaging. OBJECTIVES: To determine frequency and topography of microbleeds in Alzheimer disease (AD) and to assess their association with leukoaraiosis and cognition. DESIGN: Case-control cross-sectional analysis. Microbleeds were counted using GRE imaging. Leukoaraiosis was rated on T2-weighted and proton density-weighted scans using the Age-Related White ... [Abstract] [Full-text]

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