News Round-Up: December 2010 1st Edition – An Important Diagnosis Removed?

A post-mortem study examined dementia in the oldest old (90-103 years of age). The researchers correlated Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) scores with neuropathological findings. They found that with the younger population there was a significant correlation between diagnosis of dementia and a combination of rating of severity of white matter lesions, Braak staging and presence of Beta Amyloid protein deposition. These three factors predicted only 30% of the variation in the CDR scores however.

A small structural MRI study (n=68) looked at the relationship between scores on a neuropsychological test  battery (CERAD) and cerebral correlates in 60 people with Mild Cognitive Impairment, 34 people with Alzheimer’s Disease and 32 controls . The researchers found that performance on certain memory tasks (immediate and delayed recall) was significantly correlated with grey matter density in several areas rather than one suggesting these functions had cortical network correlates. Other test components were correlated with single areas.

The authors of a recent study looked at participants who had enrolled in a research register. They found that for older adult participants, transport was the biggest barrier to participating in the research.

There is a special edition of Brain Bulletin on Schizophrenia genes freely available here. This includes papers on the complex traits of schizophrenia and genome-wide associations.

Mind Hacks has another episode of Spike Activity including a link to the DSM-V taskforce’s consideration of removing narcissistic personality disorder as a separate disorder.

There is another installment of ‘Quick Links‘ at ‘A Blog Around the Clock’ with links to various articles including coverage of the controversial arsenic utilising life form which offers a new perspective on the nature of life (also covered at ‘Ive Got Your Missing Links‘). There is also a link to an article on rehearsing stressful situations in order to better manage them.

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