Neuropathologist Charles Duyckaerts Passes Away at Age 70
Stalwart of dementia neuropathology was best known for his work on tau pathology.
NEWS
Crenezumab Secondaries Negative; Gantenerumab OLE Hints at Efficacy
At AAIC, secondary endpoint data from the API Colombian study showed trends favoring crenezumab, while people taking gantenerumab in open-label extensions declined more slowly than matched controls.
As Brain Ages, Autophagosomes Bloat Astrocytes
In old mice, and young mice with amyloid, astrocytes in the hippocampus swell with autophagosomes, which sequester protein and derail cell functions.
FTD-GRN: A Disease of Angiogenesis and Vascular Fibrosis?
With too few endothelial cells and too many fibroblasts in frontotemporal dementia due to insufficient progranulin, the blood-brain barrier and angiogenesis go haywire.
Does Tangle Progression Follow ApoE Expression?
Correlating PET imaging with spatial transcriptomics revealed paths for the progression of tau pathology throughout the brain.
Behold, Plaques Mapped in Whole Brain at High Resolution
Advances in microscopy yield unprecedented views of Aβ plaques in vivo and ex vivo. The vistas offer new insights about how plaques form, grow, and clear.
Receptor Decoy Raises Risk of Alzheimer’s—But Only in Women
High sST2, an IL-33 receptor fragment, raises the odds of Alzheimer’s in women who carry APOE4. A variant that lowers sST2 mobilizes microglia, protects against AD.
Sylvain Lesné, Who Found Aβ*56, Accused of Image Manipulation
Other scientists found indications of potentially doctored western blots in multiple papers, including several on Aβ*56. Investigations are underway at journals, NIH, UMinnesota.
SPOTLIGHT
An AAIC Back to Full Form
Despite face masks, this year’s Alzheimer's Association International Conference marked a return to normal after two years of pandemic restrictions. The 5,200 participants in San Diego dwarfed the 1,200 who attended AAIC 2021 in Denver. Another 4,200 people watched virtually. There were no major clinical trial reveals as the field awaits pivotal Phase 3 readouts this fall. The meeting did feature advances in imaging and fluid biomarkers, as well as new data suggesting exercise can slow cognitive decline. On anti-amyloid antibodies, researchers fleshed out topline results from the crenezumab trial and reviewed models that suggest plaque removal could become more powerful over time.
Image Brain Plaque With a Microscope
Advances in light microscopy offer researchers a detailed look at amyloid plaques in the whole mouse brain, both in vivo and ex vivo. At 150-micron resolution and below, optoacoustics and optical tomography reveal how plaques interact with their surroundings, such as neuronal and vascular processes. Scientists might adapt these techniques to study how plaque form, grow, and clear in unprecedented detail.
Don’t Name It: Glial States Confound Easy Labels
With the advent of transcriptomics, scientists are profiling a growing variety of astrocyte and microglial states in healthy and diseased brains—and labeling them with an alphabet soup of names. How similar or distinct are these states across studies? How do they relate to cell function? Two consensus statements now make a radical suggestion: Eschew names altogether. No more premogeniture naming. Instead, describe states using multiple modalities, and focus on function. This humble approach may facilitate a better understanding of glial states and—eventually—a consensus naming system.
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