A tattoo on the brain: The neurobiology of Alzheimer's disease (Ep 71)

What causes Alzheimer’s disease? Why are some people more at risk than others? What are the prospects for a cure and the best options for slowing the onset of symptoms?

On this episode of Big Biology, we talk with Daniel Gibbs, a retired neurologist, about his new book: “A Tattoo on My Brain: A Neurologist’s Personal Battle Against Alzheimer’s Disease”. A few years back, Dan discovered his genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), which motivated him to chronicle his journey from treating patients with dementia to his own experience with AD. Over 50 million people worldwide are diagnosed with AD, yet we still know surprisingly little about how this disease arises at the cellular and molecular levels, and much less about why such a devastating condition persists in spite of what should be strong natural selection against it.

In the episode, we discuss these enduring mysteries about Alzheimer’s, what it means to be an APOE4 homozygote, and what precautions individuals with AD can take to slow and best manage their symptoms.

Cover art: Keating Shahmehri