Prof Nick Fox on dementia, tomorrow in Edinburgh

 

Time and venue: 5pm, Tuesday 16th June. Room F21, Department of Psychology, 7 George Square, EH8 9JZ

CCACE are pleased to host Professor Nick Fox for our last seminar before the summer break.

Professor Nick Fox from University College London is the Director of the Dementia Resaerch Centre in London and is also a Consultant Neurologist in a cognitive disorders clinic. His research interests are in improving diagnosis in dementia and in using biomarkers to accelerate the research for effective therapies. Please find details of his talk below.

Talk title: "Imaging the onset and progression of neurodegeneration: Prospects for prevention?"

Abstract: There is now consistent evidence to suggest there is a long and detectable preclinical period to a number of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s disease. Although the exact sequence and time course of biomarker and imaging changes in these diseases are unclear, in Alzheimer’s disease, cerebral amyloid deposition appears to predate neuro-degeneration and clinical decline by more than a decade. Hippocampal and brain atrophy rates become abnormal much closer to symptoms with pathological rates of loss evident around five years before clinical diagnosis.

As a result of this, and motivated by recent failures of Phase III trials in mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease, there is increased interest in undertaking trials at a much earlier stage in the disease – when less irreversible neuronal loss has taken place and there is more to save – perhaps even before individuals have any cognitive symptoms. The first trials in presymptomatic familial and sporadic AD are underway and further studies are planned. Similarly there are now a number of initiatives in other neurodegenerative diseases such as frontotemporal dementia or Huntington’s disease where treatments will be trialed in presymptomatic or very early disease. Designing such “prevention” trials raises a number of challenges including how best to identify subjects for inclusion, how to assess how near to symptoms they are and how to assess progression. Imaging and biomarkers will have important roles to play in meeting these challenges.

This seminar is open to all and a wine reception will follow the talk.
Please do send this email across your own mailing lists as this talk has a wide appeal to those interested in both pathological and nonpathological ageing.
I look forward to seeing you there tomorrow.
Many thanks,
Beverly

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Dr Beverly Roberts
Scientific Administrator and Researcher
Centre for Cognitive Ageing and Cognitive Epidemiology (CCACE)

Department of Psychology
University of Edinburgh
7 George Square
Edinburgh
EH8 9JZ

Mon/Tue/Wed AM: CCACE administration, room F2
Tel: 0131 650 3368
Wed PM/Thur/Fri: Personal research, room F8
Tel: 0131 650 4639 

Please note I work 8am-4pm daily

www.ccace.ed.ac.uk

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