The workings of memory and learning have yet to be clarified, especially at the neural circuitry level. But researchers at Uppsala University have now, jointly with Brazilian collaborators, discovered a specific brain neuron with a central role in learning. This study, published in Neuron, may have a bearing on the potential for counteracting memory loss in Alzheimer’s disease.

When a person with dementia forgets having just eaten dinner, it is due to hippocampus damage. In contrast, the same person can describe in vivid detail a fishing trip to Norway 40 years ago. Both cases entail the use of episodic memory, the brain’s storage of events in which we have been personally involved. Dementia diseases impair the ability to form new memories, especially of events since the onset of the disease.

Researchers at Uppsala University have now, jointly with Brazilian colleagues, found certain neurons in the brain that play a crucial part in learning. The same research group had previously discovered ‘gatekeeper cells’ or, in technical parlance, OLM (Oriens-lacunosum moleculare) cells. These are located in the hippocampus, the brain area known to be active in forming new memories. The new findings from Klas Kullander’s research group show that OLM cells’ activity affects the encoding of memories in the brain.

An exciting experimental drug developed by scientists at Johns Hopkins Medicine has been found to stop the progression of Parkinson’s disease in live mice models. The new drug could be the first medication to specifically slow the progression of the devastating disease as opposed to current treatments that only target the symptoms.

Microglia are a kind of immune cell primarily found in the brain. One of the neurodegenerative processes that occurs in the brains of Parkinson’s disease patients is when the microglial cells send chemical signals to another kind of brain cell called astrocytes. This signal spurns those astrocytes into more aggressive behaviors, eating away at connections between neurons.

“The activated astrocytes we focused on go into a revolt against the brain,” explains Ted Dawson, one of the researchers on the project, “and this structural breakdown contributes to the dead zones of brain tissue found in those with Parkinson’s disease. The idea was that if we could find a way to calm those astrocytes, we might be able to slow the progression of Parkinson’s disease.”

British researchers are zeroing in on genes they believe are responsible for early onset Alzheimer’s disease in people with Down syndrome.

WEDNESDAY, July 3, 2018 — British researchers are zeroing in on the genes that they believe are responsible for early onset Alzheimer’s disease in people with Down syndrome.

The two conditions have long been strongly linked.

The findings — based on research with mice — could pave the way for new medicines to prevent Alzheimer’s in people with Down syndrome, and shed light on the development of dementia in the general population, the study authors said.

Living in a culture dependant upon caffeine and lack of sleep, its important to remember that sleep offers an incredibly important biological function. One night of sleep deprivation is tied to Alzheimer’s disease.

While people once believed that sleep was merely a period of inactivity and rest, modern studies in chronobiology have shown that sleep is important for a variety of biochemical processes. A recent study suggests that sleep is even more important than physicians and scientists previously thought, allowing the brain to flush out toxic chemicals that build up over the course of a day.

Neurotoxins and Your Brain

The cells in your brain are busy throughout the day, performing a variety of reactions that create mental function. Unfortunately, many of these processes have toxic byproducts that could be deadly to cells if not removed.