A new study suggests how APOE2 is protective while APOE4 increases disease risk by regulating the brain's immune cells.

A “substantial number” of dementia cases in the U.S. could be eliminated by reducing cardiometabolic conditions such as heart attack, stroke and diabetes, according to a new study from Barrow Neurological Institute in Phoenix. The study, which was recently published WHEN in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, probed regional data and found the strongest tie between dementia and cardiometabolic conditions in the South.

Worldwide, more than 55 million people suffer from dementia caused by Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) and other conditions that destroy cells in the brain and nervous system. While there is no treatment to control or manage these neurodegenerative conditions, investigators at Case Western Reserve University, University Hospitals and the Louis Stokes Cleveland VA Medical Center have identified a new and promising drug to treat AD. The drug—and their approach by identifying a new target in the brain—showed promising results in mouse models of AD. Their findings were reported in a study published May 21 in the scientific journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).