Paper Alert: VCAM1 Opens the Door to Brain Aging
Expression of VCAM1 on the endothelial cells that line the blood-brain barrier allowed aging factors in the plasma to exact their toll on the brain.
NEWS
BACE Inhibitors: Postmortem on One, Live Updates on Two
Lanabecestat, elenbecestat, and umibecestat all showed data at the AD/PD conference in Lisbon. Learn what definitely doesn’t work and what might yet.
Plasticity Hums With Protein Synthesis on Both Sides of Synapse
Long recognized in dendrites, scientists now report that substantial synaptic proteome remodeling happens on the axonal side, too.
Gamma Waves Synchronized by Light: Good for Synapses, Memory?
More mouse data add to the argument that a flashing light sequence could potentially fight cognitive decline.
WHO Weighs in With Guidelines for Preventing Dementia
The global agency’s report recommends physical activity, a healthy diet, stopping alcohol abuse and smoking, and managing one’s weight, blood pressure, and diabetes.
Keep Your Enthusiasm? Scientists Process Brutal Trial Data
“We are learning” was the tenor of debate about the latest round of setbacks for anti-amyloid trials in symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease at a recent conference in Lisbon.
Forget Fibrils: Lewy Pathology Is More Lipid Than Protein
An electron microscopy study reveals a jumbled mess of membrane chunks and malfunctioning organelles, bound together by phosphorylated or truncated α-synuclein.
Do Immune Cells Promote the Spread of α-Synuclein Pathology?
At AD/PD 2019, scientists implicated both peripheral and central innate immunity in promoting propagation.
Virtual Exhibit Hall
Alzforum encourages users to visit the Virtual Exhibit Hall, where companies showcase their newest initiatives, products, and services. We welcome Dash Genomics, Inc. and Abcam, which join our other exhibitors — Biogen, BioLegend, BrainXell, NanoString Technologies, and the Jackson Laboratory.
SPOTLIGHT
AD/PD Coverage Closes With Two Updates on Anti-Amyloid Trials
We have concluded coverage from the 14th AD/PD conference held earlier this spring in Lisbon, Portugal. Our 16-part series runs the gamut from genetics to innate immune cells, from ApoE to lipids, from the search for diagnostic tests to the basic science of endocytosis and α-synuclein. We covered the pursuit of new therapeutic targets, as well as the painful harvest currently being reaped from Phase 3 anti-amyloid trials. On that, scientists at different companies were sharing detailed results from each other’s programs in hopes of learning as they "fall forward toward success." Crenezumab, lanabecestat, aducanumab are the latest official casualties; AD/PD offered data on the first two. Despite obituaries in the analyst press, the amyloid hypothesis is not dead. Gantenerumab, BAN2401, elenbecestat, umibecestat, and CAD106 are in late-stage trials, and crenezumab and solanezumab are still being evaluated in presymptomatic AD. See AD/PD Parts 15, 16.
α-Synuclein Gives Up Some Secrets
The 2019 AD/PD conference in Lisbon showcased the latest in Parkinson’s research, including new glimpses into the behavior of pathologic α-synuclein. Among the surprises: Peripheral and central immune cells may promote the spread of pathology, challenging the hypothesis of templated seeding as the primary mechanism. In mouse models, macrophages in the gut trigger α-synuclein accumulation there, which then spreads to the brain. Within the brain, α-synuclein transmission was linked to microglial activation. Surprise number two: Lewy bodies, rather than being primarily fibrillar, are mostly fat. Researchers vizualized a mass of undigested membrane fragments and organelles bound together with phosphorylated and truncated α-synuclein.
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