Date Time
Mayo study differentiates what blood-based proteins indicate about brain cell loss
Two proteins that can be measured in the blood – plasma total tau and neurofilament light – are associated with brain cell loss that causes memory and thinking problems. Neurofilament light was more strongly related to worse cognition and neurodegeneration, compared to total tau, according to a preliminary Mayo Clinic study that will be presented in the Emerging Science program at the 2021 virtual American Academy of Neurology Annual Meeting.
Brain cell loss, or neurodegeneration, is a common characteristic of many disorders, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular dementia and Lewy body dementia. However, the causes and location of neurodegeneration in the brain vary depending on the disease.
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Two proteins in blood plasma neurofilament light chain (NfL) and total tau were associated with cognition and neuroimaging outcomes, strengthening their potential as blood-based biomarkers of neurodegeneration, a large longitudinal study showed.
At baseline, NfL was more strongly associated with brain atrophy in multiple areas, white matter alterations, and changes in global cognition, reported Michelle Mielke, PhD, of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. The combination of elevated NfL and total tau at baseline was more strongly associated with worse global cognition and memory loss and with neuroimaging measures, including temporal cortex thickness and increased number of infarcts.
RYMAN HEALTHCARE
The music video recreation features 35 residents, with an average age of 80, from three different Auckland retirement homes.
When you reach a certain age, every lost key or hard-to-conjure word comes with a nagging question - is my mind slipping? The answer, unfortunately, is probably yes, but that doesn t mean that you re becoming senile or have something to worry about, says Denise Park, distinguished university chair in behavioural and brain sciences at the University of Texas at Dallas. Most people experience a little bit of forgetfulness as they get older, particularly in their 60s and 70s, Park says, and this is the result of subtle changes in processing speed that begin in your 20s. Initially, these changes are too small to perceive, but eventually they become noticeable.
Rochester Teacher is Semi-Finalist For MN Teacher of the Year
A Rochester educator has been named a semi-finalist for the 2021 Minnesota Teacher of the Year award.
Education Minnesota has narrowed the initial field of 75 candidates to a list of 25 semi-finalists that includes Century High School teacher Natalia Benjamin. She teaches English language and ethnic studies to students in grades nine through 12. Benjamin was previously honored as the Rochester Mayor Medal of Honor for Educational Excellence in 2019.
Benjamin s nomination and the nominations of the 24 other semi-finalists will be reviewed by a selection panel later this month before Education Minnesota names 10 finalists. The winner of the award will be announced at a ceremony later this year.
March 13, 2021
Elizabeth Anne Brown
THE WASHINGTON POST – Forget the soul – it turns out the eyes may be the best window to the brain.
Changes to the retina may foreshadow Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s diseases, and researchers said a picture of your eye could assess your future risk of neurodegenerative disease.
Pinched off from the brain during embryonic development, the retina contains layers of neurons that seem to experience neurodegenerative disease along with their cousins inside the skull.
The key difference is that these retinal neurons, right against the jellylike vitreous of the eyeball, live and die where scientists can see them.