Imagine being able to look inside the brain of a person with Alzheimer’s disease and see the changes that are interfering with that person’s thinking, memory, and other important brain functions. Scientists working in the field of neuropathology are doing just that. Neuropathology is the study of diseases of the brain, spinal cord, and nerves through analyzing tissues removed during autopsy or biopsy. This analysis is central to research on Alzheimer’s and other neurodegenerative diseases.
To understand more about the causes of Alzheimer’s and related dementias, NIA-funded researchers across the country are making connections between what happens while a person is alive and what can be seen in their brain after death. One such effort is the Religious Orders Study (ROS) and Rush Memory and Aging Project (MAP), referred to collectively as ROSMAP. For more than 25 years, ROSMAP has collected a combination of lifestyle and autopsy information that makes it a powerful resource for researchers around the world to study aging and dementia risk and progression.
ROSMAP researchers are discovering important clues about factors that may offer some protection from cognitive decline and dementia. According to ROSMAP autopsy data, nearly one third of older adults in the study who died have the amyloid plaques and tau tangles associated with Alzheimer’s but did not have any signs of cognitive decline. The ROSMAP study also found that eating the MIND diet — which focuses on plant-based foods and limits red meat, sweets, and saturated fats — helps to preserve cognition even in the presence of some Alzheimer’s pathology. Building on these results, researchers continue to study diet and other lifestyle factors that may help lower the risk or slow cognitive decline in Alzheimer’s and related dementias.
