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Small study suggests 40Hz sensory stimulation may benefit some Alzheimer’s patients for years
Five volunteers continued receiving 40Hz stimulation for around two years after an early-stage MIT clinical study. Those who had late-onset Alzheimer’s performed significantly better on several assessments than comparable Alzheimer’s patients outside the trial A new research paper documents the outcomes of five volunteers who continued to receive 40Hz light and sound stimulation for around…
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MIT invents human brain model with six major cell types to enable personalized disease research, drug discovery
Cultured from induced pluripotent stem cells, ‘miBrains’ integrate all major brain cell types and model brain structures, cellular interactions, activity, and pathological features. A new 3D human brain tissue platform developed by MIT researchers is the first to integrate all major brain cell types, including neurons, glial cells and the vasculature into a single culture.…
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Study explains how a rare gene variant contributes to Alzheimer’s disease
Lipid metabolism and cell membrane function can be disrupted in the neurons of people who carry rare variants of ABCA7. A new study from MIT neuroscientists reveals how rare variants of a gene called ABCA7 may contribute to the development of Alzheimer’s in some of the people who carry it. Dysfunctional versions of the ABCA7…
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Alzheimer’s erodes brain cells’ control of gene expression, undermining function, cognition
Study of 3.5 million cells from more than 100 human brains finds that Alzheimer’s progression—but also resilience to disease—depends on preserving epigenomic stability. Most people recognize Alzheimer’s from its devastating symptoms such as memory loss, while new drugs target pathological aspects of disease manifestations, such as plaques of amyloid proteins. Now a sweeping new study…
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In Down syndrome mice, 40Hz light and sound improve cognition, neurogenesis, connectivity
Study provides new evidence that sensory stimulation of gamma-frequency brain rhythms may promote broad-based restorative neurological health response. Studies by a growing number of labs have identified neurological health benefits from exposing human volunteers or animal models to light, sound and/or tactile stimulation at the brain’s “gamma” frequency rhythm of 40Hz. In the latest such…
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Review: Evidence expanding that 40Hz gamma stimulation promotes brain health
A decade of studies from labs around the world provide a growing evidence base that increasing the power of the brain’s gamma rhythms could help fight Alzheimer’s, and perhaps other, neurological diseases. A decade after scientists in The Picower Institute for Learning and Memory at MIT first began testing whether sensory stimulation of the brain’s…
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Study reveals ways in which 40Hz sensory stimulation may preserve brain’s ‘white matter’
MIT scientists report that gamma frequency light and sound stimulation preserves myelination in mouse models and reveal molecular mechanisms that may underlie the benefit. Early-stage trials in Alzheimer’s disease patients and studies in mouse models of the disease have suggested positive impacts on pathology and symptoms from exposure to light and sound presented at the “gamma” band…
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Study across multiple brain regions discerns Alzheimer’s vulnerability and resilience factors
Genomics and lab studies reveal numerous findings, including a key role for Reelin amid neuronal vulnerability, and for choline and antioxidants in sustaining cognition An MIT study published today in Nature provides new evidence for how specific cells and circuits become vulnerable in Alzheimer’s disease, and hones in on other factors that may help some people show resilience…
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Congratulations Mingus Rae Zoller
Graduate student Mingus Rae Zoller has been named to the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s highly selective Gilliam Fellows Program. Read the full story on The Picower Institute website: https://picower.mit.edu/news/fellowship-supports-students-work-advance-alzheimers-research-and-equity
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A noninvasive treatment for “chemo brain”
Stimulating gamma brain waves may protect cancer patients from memory impairment and other cognitive effects of chemotherapy. Patients undergoing chemotherapy often experience cognitive effects such as memory impairment and difficulty concentrating — a condition commonly known as “chemo brain.” MIT researchers have now shown that a noninvasive treatment that stimulates gamma frequency brain waves may…