A graduate student from the University of Wisconsin–Madison is pushing for the disaggregation of data in research to better understand how individuals from different ethnic subgroups are represented as research participants and as researchers. Kao Lee Yang began writing and discussing the topic after the Howard Hughes Medical Institute’s Gilliam Fellowship for Advanced Study rejected her application for not meeting their racial and ethnic underrepresentation criteria, despite often being the onl...
Apr 27, 2022•17 min•Ep. 121
Dr. Cynthia Carlsson and Daniel A. King join the podcast to discuss some of the unique ways that Alzheimer’s disease affects Veterans and Native Americans. Their work at the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center allows them to connect with people who are at higher risk for Alzheimer’s disease and help educate them on how to maintain brain health, both through Dr. Carlsson’s research and clinical practice and Mr. King’s outreach to Veterans and Native Americans. Discussing the importance ...
Apr 12, 2022•24 min•Ep. 120
Research in the field of fluid biomarkers is leading to new developments in Alzheimer’s disease identification, including new tests that can predict Alzheimer’s based on biomarkers in blood. Ahead of his keynote address as part of Alzheimer's Disease & Related Dementias Research Day on April 5, 2022, Dr. Thomas Karikari joins the podcast to discuss his work with these new blood tests, how accurate they are, and what research needs to be done before they are made available for clinical use. G...
Mar 22, 2022•33 min•Ep. 119
The Puglielli lab at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health has found a way to manipulate autophagy — a process where cells clean out damaged materials — to rid the brain of toxic proteins like amyloid and tau. Researchers hope to use the power of this process to develop future treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and other diseases of aging. Luigi Puglielli joins the podcast to discuss his team’s research over the past 15 years, why the scientific process can take years ...
Mar 11, 2022•25 min•Ep. 118
A recent study from Alzheimer’s disease researchers at the University of Wisconsin–Madison used neuroimaging technology called 4D Flow MRI to study the relationship between blood vessel disease and Alzheimer’s disease. Published in December 2021, the study found that people with Alzheimer’s disease symptoms had stiffer blood vessels in their brains, which could lead to inflammation and a buildup of Alzheimer’s biomarkers like amyloid and tau proteins. Lead researcher Leonardo Rivera-Rivera joins...
Feb 22, 2022•28 min•Ep. 117
On January 11, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) announced its much-anticipated coverage proposal for monoclonal antibody treatments that target amyloid for the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. According to the proposed policy, this class of drugs, which includes aducanumab, also known by the brand name Aduhelm, would be covered for people with Medicare only if they are enrolled in qualifying clinical trials. Dr. Jason Karlawish joins the podcast to discuss the recent proposa...
Jan 29, 2022•30 min•Ep. 116
In November 2021, Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston launched the first human trial of a nasal vaccine for Alzheimer’s disease. Nearly 20 years of research went into developing the vaccine, which uses the immune system to clear Alzheimer’s disease-related proteins from the brain. Lead researcher Dr. Howard Weiner joins the podcast to discuss the science behind the vaccine and how it could introduce new ways of treating other neurodegenerative diseases in the future. Guest: Howard Weiner, MD,...
Jan 20, 2022•25 min•Ep. 115
Medical anthropologist and professor of humanities and public health sciences Daniel George, PhD, and professor of neurology and medicine Peter Whitehouse, MD, PhD, join the podcast to discuss their recent book, American Dementia: Brain Health in an Unhealthy Society. In it, they argue that 20th century policies focused on reducing inequality, increasing access to education and healthcare, and protecting the environment contributed to today’s declining dementia rates, but inequalities in the 21s...
Jan 06, 2022•31 min•Ep. 114
There are many common beliefs about metabolism. Perhaps you’ve heard that a person’s metabolism slows around middle age, or that a woman’s metabolism is slower than a man’s. However widespread these beliefs are, recent research from the journal Science has found that these conceptions of metabolism are wrong. In a groundbreaking study, researchers have found that metabolism goes through four key phases over our lives, only beginning to slow around age 60. This, among other findings, are now chan...
Dec 09, 2021•25 min•Ep. 113
Dementia impacts a person’s ability to complete day-to-day activities like familiar tasks at work or at home. What if we could identify these changes in everyday behaviors early enough to identify preclinical Alzheimer’s disease? That’s what Dr. Sayeh Bayat, an assistant professor at the University of Calgary, looked to find out. Dr. Bayat is the lead author of a recent paper highlighting how driving behaviors such as braking, following the speed limit and the number of trips taken could predict...
Nov 30, 2021•19 min•Ep. 112
