Memory Lane…

This week on Universal Medicine, we return to the brain to discuss a potential discovery which could allow for early diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer’s.

Affecting an estimated 850,000 people in the UK, Alzheimer’s is a neurological disease impacting numerous brain functions – including the storage and retrieval of memory. Evidence suggests that the allele of the disease could be inherited from the parental genome upon meiosis. It has been discovered that the expression of one gene variant in children called APOE4 is associated with a higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s. Upon identification of this gene in children, it could allow for steps to be undertaken to delay the start of the disease – if not prevent it.

Evidence from memory tests and brain scans on approximately 1200 children, aged 3-20 years, is what forms the foundation of this discovery. Research has found that the presence of APOE4 affects brain development often in regions were Alzheimer’s is common. Following analysis of the data from these tests, it has been found that those with the APOE4 gene performed weaker in the memory tests by comparison to those without it. However, this difference in performance was only noticeable until a very early age; children who were 8 years old with APOE4 had the same test scores as those without the gene. Thus, further analysis may need to be conducted to assess whether the memory of children is worsening or improving as they get older.

At present, this discovery remains inconclusive and long term testing will be required to gain a better understanding of changes in brain function with age as well as the significance of the APOE4 gene variant. This is how science works: much testing is needed and each discovery must be heavily scrutinized before it’s implemented. Nevertheless, it all stems from the initial research – which is shaping our health and well-being for the future…

Thank you for reading this week’s blog and please feel free to comment and subscribe. Have a great week!

Gagandeep Sachdeva
Universal Medicine  

Sources:
http://www.express.co.uk/life-style/health/689830/first-signs-of-dementia-can-be-spotted-in-children

http://www.nhs.uk/conditions/Alzheimers-disease/Pages/Introduction.aspx

https://www.memorywalk.org.uk/

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