The Link Between Dementia and Cardiovascular Disease

Studies presented at the annual meeting of the Society for Neuroscience associated breakdowns in the brain's blood vessels with Alzheimer's and vascular dementia, reports Medical Xpress . Molecules that flag damage in these systems could help detect these diseases earlier and inform more effective interventions. The studies indicated that biomarkers, which signal brain vascular injury, could help spot early-stage dementia, permitting intervention and ultimately treatment to improve outcomes. Meanwhile, cardiovascular exercise appears to improve blood flow to white matter and protects against vascular impairment in a mouse model of dementia, while a molecule that is depleted in persons with vascular dementia could be utilized for early detection or treatment. In addition, age-related loss of function in the brain's lymphatic system was found to have a role in neurodegeneration, and improving it could help delay or prevent Alzheimer's. Moreover, the blood brain barrier's effectiveness is weakened in mice engineered with the strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's, leading to neuronal loss and cognitive decline. "Knowledge of the neurobiology and mechanisms involved open the door to being able to identify dementia early, which offers hope of potential new treatments and interventions that could help patients and their families around the world," said the Boston University School of Medicine's Richard Wainford.