New Insights Into Early Brain Circuit Breakdown In Alzheimer’s

One of nan first parts of nan encephalon affected by Alzheimer's illness is nan entorhinal cortex - a region that plays a large domiciled successful memory, spatial navigation, and nan brain's soul mapping system.

With support from nan Commonwealth of Virginia's Alzheimer's and Related Diseases Research Award Fund (ARDRAF), Fralin Biomedical Research Institute astatine VTC scientists Sharon Swanger and Shannon Farris are moving to understand why this area is particularly vulnerable. 

Swanger studies really encephalon cells pass crossed synapses in disease-susceptible encephalon circuits, while Farris focuses connected how different circuits successful nan brain's memory center function at nan molecular level. Their overlapping expertise made nan collaboration a earthy fit.

"We've some been studying how circuits disagree astatine nan molecular level for a while," said Swanger, an adjunct professor astatine nan investigation institute. "This caller collaborative task brings together my activity connected synapses and Shannon's connected mitochondria successful a measurement that addresses a large spread successful the Alzheimer's disease field."

This benignant of state-level support is critical. It gives researchers successful Virginia nan chance to inquire questions that whitethorn yet make a quality for group surviving pinch Alzheimer's. It's meaningful to beryllium portion of investigation that could thief group facing that journey."

Shannon Farris, VTC scientist

A cardinal attraction of their investigation is mitochondria - mini structures wrong encephalon cells that supply nan power needed for a assortment of cellular functions successful neurons including synaptic transmission. In Alzheimer's disease, mitochondria stop moving decently successful nan people of nan disease.

Farris and Swanger are investigating whether mitochondria successful a susceptible memory-related circuit whitethorn go overloaded pinch calcium, a cardinal signaling chemic for aggregate neuronal and synaptic processes. That overload could lend to nan early breakdown of memory circuits.

Swanger and Farris are members of nan Fralin Biomedical Research Institute's Center for Neurobiology Research and also faculty in the Department of Biomedical Sciences and Pathobiology of nan Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine.