Some infants who carry a gene mutation linked to Alzheimer’s disease may have differences in brain development compared to infants without the mutation, a new study found.
Researchers from Brown University and Banner Alzheimer’s Institute gave DNA tests to 162 infants between ages 2 months and 25 months to look for a gene variant called APOE-E4, known to be a risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease. They then compared MRI brain scans of the 60 infants who had the gene variant to the rest who did not.
Unlike those without the gene variant, those who did had increased brain growth in the front part of the brain and smaller parts in the middle and back of the brain. These differences in growth are similar to older adults who have Alzheimer’s disease, the researchers wrote.
The findings suggest that carriers of the gene variants have brain differences that can be detected early in life and may help researchers track and explain Alzheimer’s symptoms that may develop later in life.
BOTTOM LINE: Some infants who carry a gene mutation linked to Alzheimer’s disease may have differences in brain development compared to infants without the mutation.
CAUTIONS: The findings do not suggest that the infants will grow up to develop Alzheimer’s disease.
WHERE TO FIND IT: JAMA Neurology, Nov. 26
Pandemic flu death toll higher than thought, study finds
The death toll from the 2009 pandemic H1N1 flu may have been 10 times higher than official estimate, new research suggests.
A global research team of 60 looked beyond the lab-confirmed cases of the flu that the World Health Organization used to generate the official estimate. They looked at weekly data of the flu by the World Health Organization and cross referenced it with death records from 21 countries. According to the researchers, many who died from the flu never received a formal diagnosis so they focused on deaths from complications that may be related to the flu, such as pneumonia.
They found that up to 203,000 people may have died of complications from the flu in 2009, most of whom were under age 65.
The findings suggest that the severity of the H1N1 flu may have been underestimated, the researchers wrote.
BOTTOM LINE: The death toll from the 2009 pandemic H1N1 flu may have been 10 times higher than official estimates.
CAUTIONS: The estimates in the study cannot be confirmed by medical diagnoses of the flu.
WHERE TO FIND IT: PLOS Medicine, Nov. 26
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