News
Forbes: New research shines light on how COVID-19 can damage the brain
July 30, 2021
Forbes interviewed Gabriel A. de Erausquin, MD, PhD, M.Sc., neurologist and researcher at the Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, regarding his research of adults 60 years and older and their cognitive issues after contracting COVID-19. The study also reviews the connection between loss of smell experienced with COVID-19 and in diseases like Alzheimer’s disease. […]
NPR: Doctors worry that memory problems after COVID-19 may set the stage for Alzheimer’s
July 27, 2021
Cassandra Hernandez, 38, contracted COVID-19 and began to experience memory and thinking problems. “I’m a nurse,” said Hernandez. “I work with surgeons and my memory was sharp.” A year after contracting COVID-19, Hernandez is still having problems with her memory. “We were at dinner and I forgot how to use a fork,” she said. Brain […]
Depression, tau deposits seen in subset of middle-aged persons
June 17, 2021
Middle-aged people with depressive symptoms who carry a genetic variation called apolipoprotein (APOE) ε4 may be more at risk to develop tau protein accumulations in the brain’s emotion- and memory-controlling regions, a new study by researchers from The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio) and collaborating institutions suggests. […]
Earlier, less-expensive dementia screening is goal of SA Medical Foundation-funded study
May 3, 2021
Detecting dementia earlier — and at much lower cost — is the goal of a San Antonio Medical Foundation grant awarded to The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio (UT Health San Antonio), The University of Texas at San Antonio (UTSA) and the South Texas Veterans Health Care System. The project will […]
Discover Magazine: Fight or Flight? Why Our Caveman Brains Keep Getting Confused
April 16, 2021
Cortisol activates the fight-or-flight response. This hormone used to be necessary for survival, but recent research shows it may be harmful to the brain. Sudha Seshadri, M.D., director of the Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s & Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio, shares her research insights with Discover Magazine. To read the article, visit […]
KSAT 12: San Antonio researchers examining COVID-19’s long-term effects on the brain
January 27, 2021
SAN ANTONIO – UT Health San Antonio researchers are trying to determine if COVID-19 will have long-term effects on older adults’ brains. San Antonio resident Robert Renteria is participating in the study. “I’m willing to do whatever I can to help in this research,” Renteria said. Last year in June, Renteria began feeling sick. “No sleep, […]
Strokes after TIAs have declined over time, study shows
January 26, 2021
But patients should be monitored for extended period after transient ischemic attacks. SAN ANTONIO and BOSTON – Study findings released Tuesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) hold both good news and bad news about transient ischemic attacks (TIAs), which are harbingers of subsequent strokes. Sudha Seshadri, MD, professor of neurology at The University of […]
Journal article reviews century of data showing COVID-19 likely to impact the brain
January 5, 2021
International consortium funded by Alzheimer’s Association will study effects. SAN ANTONIO and CHICAGO – An article published Jan. 5 in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association cites decades of published scientific evidence to make a compelling case for SARS-CoV-2’s expected long-term effects on the brain and nervous system. Dementia researchers from The University of […]
UT Health San Antonio, UT Southwestern get $1 million to establish brain bank program
December 3, 2020
UT Health San Antonio, through its Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimer’s and Neurodegenerative Diseases, along with UT Southwestern Medical Center in Dallas, has received a nearly $1 million grant to establish the Texas Statewide Brain Bank Initiative. The $983,841 collaborative research grant is from the Texas Alzheimer’s Research and Care Consortium, or TARCC. Kevin Bieniek, […]
160 genes linked to brain shrinkage in study of 45,000 adults
September 25, 2020
A new study implicates 160 genes in brain shrinkage seen on MRIs of 45,000 healthy adults. The shrinkage is in the cortex, the dimply outer layer of the brain that gives rise to thinking, awareness and action, and largely consists of gray matter. The study, published Sept. 22 in the journal Nature Communications, examined 34 regions […]