Caltech to Host Alzheimer's Disease Forum Oct. 14

PASADENA, Calif. – This characterization of the terrible disease of the brain resonates with anyone who has seen its destructive power, which now affects 10 percent of people over 64 years of age and 50 percent of people over 84.

When a patient develops Alzheimer's, specific populations of nerve cells in the brain become damaged and die. The triggers of this brain damage remain unclear, which makes the development of effective methods for detecting and treating the disease very difficult.

A panel discussion on new Alzheimer's diagnostic technologies and treatments will take place at 8 p.m. on Tuesday, October 14, in Beckman Auditorium at the California Institute of Technology, 332 S. Michigan Avenue in Pasadena. This event, "Remembering the Past, Imaging the Future: Diagnosing and Treating Alzheimer's Disease," is the ninth Caltech Biology Forum. It is free, open to the public, and tickets are not required.

The panel is composed of three prominent Alzheimer's researchers: Jeffrey Cummings, MD, director of the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, UCLA, and president of the board of directors, Alzheimer's Association; Scott Fraser, PhD, Anna L. Rosen Professor of Biology, Caltech; and John Mazziotta, MD, PhD, John Mazziotta, MD, PhD, chair, UCLA department of neurology and director, Ahmanson-Lovelace Brain Mapping Center at UCLA. Robert Lee Hotz, science writer for the Los Angeles Times, will moderate the discussion.

Alzheimer's disease is the leading cause of dementia (the deterioration of thinking skills) in the elderly. Its primary symptoms include increasing forgetfulness and memory loss, difficulty with reasoning and judgment, disorientation, decreased language skills, and trouble with routine tasks. Alzheimer's can also lead to changes in personality, such as depression, agitation, anxiety, and, in extreme cases, delusions and hallucinations.

The disease usually progresses gradually, making early detection challenging. The current method of diagnosing Alzheimer's involves employing a variety of behavioral tests, none of which are definitive. In addition, there are two kinds of abnormal brain structures associated with Alzheimer's, plaques and tangles. Visualization of these structures may someday aid doctors in their diagnosis of the disease, and the panel will discuss the promise of the technology.

To date, there is no cure for Alzheimer's disease. Although there are medications that can partially alleviate the symptoms, full loss of memory is inevitable. The panel will discuss new treatments on the horizon.

The forum is sponsored by Caltech in conjunction with the Alzheimer's Association and the San Gabriel Valley Newspaper Group.

For more information on this Biology Forum, call (626) 395-4652 or toll-free 1-888-222-5832. Persons with disabilities can call (626) 395-4688 (voice) or (626) 395-3700 (TDD), weekdays, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

For more information on Alzheimer's disease, contact the Alzheimer's Association by phone at 800-660-1993, or on the web at http://www.alz.org.

MEDIA CONTACT: Katherine Poulin Caltech Media Relations (626) 395-3226 poulin@its.caltech.edu

Visit the Caltech media relations web site: http://pr.caltech.edu/media