University of South Florida researchers report that a novel needle-free vaccine approach is effective and safe in clearing brain-damaging plaques from a mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease.
Cognitive
Alzheimer’s Disease :: Reduced blood flow cause decline in cognitive function in Alzheimer’s disease
A reduction in blood flow precedes the decline in cognitive function in Alzheimer’s patients,” said Berislav Zlokovic, M.D., Ph.D., professor in the Department of Neurological Surgery.
Folic Acid :: Folic acid and folate supplements improve cognitive function
Folic acid and folate supplements can boost the cognitive powers among older adults. Researchers in Holland say that the powers attributed to folic acid supplements regarding their ability to increase the powers of cognition among older adults are real.
Language :: Internationally adopted children shed light on how babies learn language
Each year, about 40,000 children are adopted across national lines, primarily by families from North America and Western Europe. These joyful occasions mark the growth of new families and also provide the framework for a natural experiment in language development. Although most are infants and toddlers, thousands of older children are also adopted. Typically, these older children loose their birth language rapidly and become fluent speakers of their new language.
Ear Tube :: Ear tube implants for normal learning disputed
Developmental impairments in children have been attributed to persistent middle-ear effusion in their early years of life. Previously, researchers reported that among children younger than 3 years of age with persistent middle-ear effusion, prompt as compared with delayed insertion of tympanostomy tubes did not result in improved cognitive, language, speech, or psychosocial development at 3, 4, or 6 years of age.
Aphasia :: Genetic cause found for word-finding disease Aphasia
Northwestern University researchers have discovered a genetic cause of a mysterious neurological disease in which people have trouble recalling and using words. The illness, Primary Progressive Aphasia, differs from Alzheimer’s Disease in which a person’s memory becomes impaired. In PPA, which can begin in the 40’s and 50’s, people eventually lose the ability to express themselves and understand speech. Although people lose the ability to communicate, they are still able to perform complicated tasks.
Autism :: Genetic mutation in autism identified
A gene called SHANK3 is mutated in a small number of individuals with autism, providing new insight into the biological basis of this disease, according to a study to be published in the January issue of Nature Genetics.
Pregnancy :: Cocaine use during pregnancy cause disabling cognitive impairments in kids
Using cocaine during pregnancy can cause disabling cognitive impairments in kids. These impairments include attention deficits, learning disabilities and emotional problems. The study was conducted by researchers at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development.
Dementia :: Relationship between delirium and dementia
For the most part, dementia and delirium have been viewed as separate and distinct conditions. But a special section of the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences, appearing in January 2007, looks at their interface, asking: Can delirium itself lead to the development of a cognitive disorder? Do delirium and dementia represent opposite ends of the same spectrum of disease, rather than two separate conditions?
Prenatal :: Prenatal cocaine’s lasting cellular effects
A recent study by investigators at the Vanderbilt Kennedy Center for Research on Human Development may help explain the long-term behavioral and neurological problems associated with prenatal exposure to cocaine.