Alzheimer & Parkinson

PINK1 serves as the central regulator of PINK1-PRKN-mediated mitophagy, and its precise regulation is critical for efficient mitochondrial clearance. Although the cleavage of PINK1 and its subsequent degradation via the N-end rule pathway under basal conditions are well understood, how full-length PINK1 stability is regulated following mitochondrial damage has remained elusive. In our recent study, we identified the STUB1-VCP/p97 axis as a mechanism that fine-tunes full-length PINK1 levels...

Glial crosstalk surrounding amyloid-β (Aβ) plaques establishes a self-propagating inflammatory niche fueling Alzheimer's disease (AD), yet the molecular triggers remain incompletely defined. We found that the calcium-dependent enzyme peptidyl-arginine deiminase 2 (PAD2) was selectively upregulated in plaque-associated astrocytes in human AD cortex and multiple APP AD transgenic mouse models. Astrocyte-specific deletion of Padi2 in 5×FAD mice rescued learning and memory, lowered Aβ load,...

One essential post-transcriptional regulatory mechanism that increases protein diversity in eukaryotes is alternative splicing. This process is crucial for maintaining nervous system function and is highly active in neurons. Dysregulation of alternative splicing is a common pathogenic factor in many neurodegenerative diseases. For example, splicing variants of tau protein and amyloid precursor protein are implicated in Alzheimer's disease; aberrant splicing of α-synuclein (SNCA) and upregulation...

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The spread of tau pathology across the cerebral cortex is closely tied to cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease (AD). To investigate mechanisms underlying tau spread, we measured bioactivity of tau seeds from inferior temporal gyrus (ITG) and superior frontal gyrus (SFG) synaptosomes in 128 individuals and demonstrated that tau seed bioactivity associates with tau phosphorylation, neurofibrillary tangles (NFTs), and cognitive impairment. Incorporating genotype data from the same individuals...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an escalating public health concern in low- and middle-income countries like Pakistan, with rising prevalence among the aging population. While global research has increasingly addressed the psychological dimensions of AD, Pakistan's contribution remains limited. This systematic review, conducted in accordance with PRISMA guidelines, examines the scope and focus of psychological research on AD in Pakistan. Eleven empirical studies published between 2014 and 2025 were...

Alzheimer's disease is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder, and the most common cause of dementia, which causes 60 to 70 percent of the cases worldwide, and its prevalence is increasing by more than 55 million people globally, with an expected increase of 139 million cases by 2050. AD is characterized by Amyloid-β plaque deposition, tau hyperphosphorylation, synaptic dysfunction, neuroinflammation, and oxidative stress, which makes the pathophysiology multifactorial and complex in terms of...

The aging brain is highly vulnerable to oxidative genomic damage, the accumulation of which is a hallmark of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The base excision repair (BER) pathway, initiated by DNA glycosylases, serves as the primary guardian against such damage. This review synthesizes recent evidence revealing the dual and dynamic roles of key DNA glycosylases including OGG1, MUTYH, MPG, and members of the NEIL family in AD pathogenesis. Beyond canonical repair functions, these enzymes actively...

Current clinical assessments of Parkinson's disease rely largely on functional scales, which lack sensitivity to subtle muscle alterations. Therefore, developing objective and quantitative tools to support both diagnosis and disease monitoring is needed. Quantitative ultrasound radiofrequency imaging, particularly through Nakagami analysis, offers a non-invasive means of characterizing tissue scattering properties that may reflect Parkinson's disease - related effects. This study aimed to assess...

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To efficiently implement plasma and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) biomarkers for staging and prognosis of Alzheimer disease (AD), we must understand their dynamics across disease progression. We analyzed participants from the Swedish BioFINDER-2 study with mass spectrometry measurements of plasma and CSF tau species, including eMTBR-tau243/MTBR-tau243 and phosphorylation occupancies (%p-tau). Disease duration was estimated using Aβ-PET and tau-PET with the SILA algorithm. Bootstrapped LOESS models...

The molecular correlates of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are increasingly being defined by multi-omics. However, findings from different data types are often difficult to reconcile. Here, we apply a data-driven multi-omics framework integrating seven omics layers from up to 1,358 aged human brain samples from the Religious Orders Study and Rush Memory and Aging Project. We demonstrate sprawling cross-omics biological factors relating to AD phenotypes. The strongest AD-associated factor (factor 8) is...

Tauopathies, such as Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia, are common neurodegenerative diseases characterized by misfolding, hyperphosphorylation, and aggregation of tau. Molecular mechanisms underlying tauopathies are still poorly understood, which is in part due to a lack of human models autonomously developing major disease hallmarks. The formation of late-stage disease phenotypes may require adult tau isoform expression, which contributes to tau pathogenesis but is challenging to...

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder characterized by amyloid-β (Aβ) accumulation, tau hyperphosphorylation, neuroinflammation, and synaptic loss. Existing therapies provide only modest symptomatic relief and fail to slow disease progression. Beyond its role in promoting pituitary growth hormone (GH) secretion, growth hormone-releasing hormone (GHRH) has shown neuroprotective effects in experimental ischemic stroke and spinal muscular atrophy. Here, we explored...

With elderly populations increasing in many countries, rates of Alzheimer disease and related dementias (ADRD) are expected to rise worldwide in the coming years. Low-income and middle-income countries, where barriers to health care are most pronounced and research representation is limited, are predicted to experience the greatest increases in ADRD prevalence. Access to advanced diagnostic and research tools, such as neuroimaging, is severely restricted in these regions, but low-field MRI is...

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Repetitive DNA sequences can adopt alternative (i.e., non-B) DNA structures, which represent an endogenous source of genetic instability. Z-DNA, a non-B-DNA structure, has been implicated in the development of age-related genetic disorders such as cancer and Alzheimer's disease. Previously, we found that Z-DNA is mutagenic in mammals; however, the impact of age on Z-DNA-induced genetic instability has not yet been explored. Here, we investigated the effects of aging on Z-DNA-induced genetic...

The proteinopathy of the RNA-binding protein TDP-43, characterized by nuclear clearance and cytoplasmic inclusion, is a hallmark of multiple neurodegenerative diseases, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Through CRISPR interference (CRISPRi) screening in human neurons, we identified the decapping scavenger enzyme (DCPS) as a novel genetic modifier of TDP-43 loss-of-function (LOF)-mediated neurotoxicity. Our findings reveal...

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This article aims to comprehensively analyze the vascular factors in Alzheimer's Disease (AD), particularly the changes in the carotid arteries, and their complex correlations with hippocampal atrophy and cognitive function. Besides the traditional β-amyloid protein (Aβ) and Tau protein hypotheses, vascular factors are increasingly regarded as crucial factors in the development of AD. This article systematically reviews the roles of cerebral blood flow perfusion changes and micro-infarctions in...