Ricerc@Sapienza

Autophagy agonists have been proposed to slow down neurodegeneration. Spermidine, a polyamine that acts as an autophagy agonist, is currently under clinical trial for the treatment of age-related memory decline. How Spermidine and other autophagy agonists regulate memory and synaptic plasticity is under investigation.

Spatial navigation tasks reveal small differences between normal and pathological aging and may thus disclose potential neuropsychological predictors of neurodegenerative diseases. The aim of our study was to investigate which navigational skills are compromised in the early phase of pathological aging as well as the extent to which they are compromised. We performed an extensive neuropsychological evaluation based on working memory and learning tasks (i.e., Corsi Block-Tapping Test and Walking Corsi Test) involving both reaching and navigational vista spaces.

BACKGROUND: Psychotic symptoms are common in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and related neurodegenerative disorders and are associated with more rapid disease progression and increased mortality. It is unclear to what degree existing criteria are utilized in clinical research and practice. OBJECTIVE: To establish research criteria for the diagnosis of psychosis in AD.

BACKGROUND: Assessment of human brain atrophy in temporal regions using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), resting state functional MRI connectivity in the left parietal cortex, and limbic electroencephalographic (rsEEG) rhythms as well as plasma amyloid peptide 42 (Aβ42) has shown that each is a promising biomarker of disease progression in amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) patients with prodromal Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the value of their combined use is unknown.

Introduction: Despite the fact that epilepsy has been associated with cognitive decline, neuropsychological, neurobiological, and neurophysiological features in patients with late-onset epilepsy of unknown etiology (LOEU) are still unknown.

BACKGROUND:
Early Alzheimer's disease (AD) detection using cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers has been recommended as enrichment strategy for trials involving mild cognitive impairment (MCI) patients.

OBJECTIVE:
To model a prodromal AD trial for identifying MRI structural biomarkers to improve subject selection and to be used as surrogate outcomes of disease progression.

Graph theory analysis on resting state electroencephalographic rhythms disclosed topological properties of cerebral network. In Alzheimer’s disease (AD) patients, this approach showed mixed results. Granger causality matrices were used as input to the graph theory allowing to estimate the strength and the direction of information transfer between electrode pairs.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common neurodegenerative disease among the elderly with a progressive decline in cognitive function significantly affecting quality of life. Both the prevalence and emotional and financial burdens of AD on patients, their families, and society are predicted to grow significantly in the near future, due to a prolongation of the lifespan.

Amyloid and tau pathological accumulation should be considered for Alzheimer's disease (AD) definition and before subjects' enrollment in disease-modifying trials. Although age, APOEε4, and sex influence cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarker levels, none of these variables are considered by current normality/abnormality cutoffs.

Few studies have examined the relationship between CSF and structural biomarkers, and cognitive function in MCI. We examined the relationship between cognitive function, hippocampal volume and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) A?42 and tau in 145 patients with MCI. Patients were assessed on cognitive tasks from the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery (CANTAB), the Geriatric Depression Scale and the Functional Activities Questionnaire. Hippocampal volume was measured using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and CSF markers of A?42, tau and p-tau181 were also measured.