In a new study, researchers found the brain network mechanism that causes spatial memory impairment in Alzheimer’s disease.
The research was conducted by a team at the University of California, Irvine.
People with Alzheimer’s disease frequently suffer from spatial memory loss, such as no recognition of where they are, and forgetting where they put their belongings.
They often show a wandering symptom, which is also a feature of spatial memory impairment.
In the study, the team recorded the brain cell activity in the hippocampus, which is the memory center of the brain, responsible for spatial memory, among other things.
They found how the normal brain network function of hippocampus cells which works to discriminate a distinct spatial environment in a process called “remapping,” was disrupted in Alzheimer’s disease.
This disruption of the hippocampus is most likely caused by the activity impairment of the entorhinal cortex, a brain region that supplies information to the hippocampus.
The findings could lead to the development of a method to reactivate brain activity of the entorhinal cortex, which may help develop new treatments for preventing spatial memory impairment in Alzheimer’s disease.
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, there are an estimated 5.8 million Americans living with Alzheimer’s disease. By 2050, that number is expected to increase to 13.8 million people.
Spatial memory impairment, such as wandering behavior, is one of the most troublesome symptoms in Alzheimer’s disease, and it occurs in more than 60 percent of Alzheimer’s patients.
Despite recent molecular and cellular findings in Alzheimer’s research, it is still largely unclear how the deterioration of brain circuit function causes spatial memory loss.
One author of the study is Kei Igarashi, Ph.D., an assistant professor in the Department of Anatomy & Neurobiology.
The study is published in Neuron.
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