Research

“The first signal is not memory loss.It’s the breakdown of communication — and the stress it creates in the people who care.” This episode explains: Why BPSD is often more damaging than memory loss itself Why caregivers are untrained for emotional realism Why Validation Therapy matters neurologically Why LLMs embedded …

An aging brain is not simply a failing brain.It’s a changing brain Some of those changes are expected, natural adaptations over time.Others are the result of stressors we can actually modify — if we understand them.Let’s start with what we see clinically. In the clinic, when we follow people from …

Contains all episodes of the Alzheimer’s & Brain Health track. Why do I keep mentioning the window between seventy and eighty-three?Because that’s often when we see divergence.It’s the decade where “coasting” becomes risky.If we delay care until after the big decline shows itself, we lose valuable time.The cost of waiting …

Gene therapy approaches for Parkinson’s disease aim to modify or supplement gene expression to restore dopamine signaling, protect neurons, or modulate disease pathways. Recent advances show improved vector delivery, better safety profiles, and early signals of clinical benefit, though challenges remain around long-term efficacy, targeting, and scalability. Alzheimer’s & Neurodegeneration …

Warren Peters,  MD,  MPH,  FOMA Director – Metabolic Obesity Research Clinic (MORC) Associate Professor LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY – School of Public Health

Warren Peters,  MD,  MPH,  FOMADirector – Metabolic Obesity Research Clinic (MORC)Associate Professor LOMA LINDA UNIVERSITY – School of Public Health From Dopamine Pills to Personalized Neurons: Aspen’s Autologous Cell Therapy for Parkinson’s Disease Parkinson’s disease (PD) has long been managed through pharmacology: levodopa, dopamine agonists, MAO-B inhibitors, COMT inhibitors, and …

LRRK2 PROTAC (ARV-102): From Target Degradation to Biomarker-Driven Trials LRRK2 PROTAC (ARV-102): From Target Degradation to Biomarker-Driven Trials Curator: Warren Peters, MD, MPH, FOMA Silo: Voice of Health – Research Edition Research Summary ARV-102 is a proteolysis-targeting chimera (PROTAC) that binds LRRK2 and recruits an E3 ligase, tagging the protein …

A New Approach in Parkinson’s: Removing a Problem Protein (LRRK2) A New Approach in Parkinson’s: Removing a Problem Protein Silo: Voice of Health – Patient Edition What’s Being Studied Scientists are testing a new therapy called ARV-102. It helps cells identify and remove a protein called LRRK2 that may contribute …

Healthspan Is Becoming Real: What the GLP-1 Shift Means Healthspan Is Becoming Real: What the GLP-1 Shift Means At a leading aging research meeting, major drug makers described GLP-1 medicines as “longevity therapeutics.” That language shift matters: it opens the door to earlier prevention trials, better biomarkers, and treatments that …

Citation: Athauda D et al., 2025, New England Journal of Medicine, DOI 10.1056/NEJMoa2306791Research Summary:A randomized double-blind Phase 2 trial evaluated lixisenatide, a GLP-1 receptor agonist, in 156 individuals Participants received lixisenatide or placebo over 12 months. The lixisenatide group maintained stable with a decline in the placebo group. Gastrointestinal effects …