Tear Fluid Biomarkers:
The Future of Alzheimer's Disease Detection
C. Elegans with Alzheimer's:
The Worm Heroes of Neurodegeneration Research
Description: Current Alzheimer's detection methods are not widely accessible and often result in delayed diagnosis, emphasizing the need for population-wide screening. We know that our tears carry lots of molecular cargo–proteins, DNA and RNA samples, and tear fluid is used in some diagnostic tests for eye diseases, so, what if we use tear samples for Alzheimer’s detection? Through examining the overlapping pathways of the brain and ocular system and signature protein biomarkers of Alzheimer’s progression, this film synthesizes recent ocular fluid biomarker research and proposes tear fluid analysis as the future of accessible Alzheimer's detection.
Description How do we study a disease that destroys 86 billion neurons? In order to model Alzheimer’s disease for research, scientists turned to a species of roundworms called Caenorhabditis Elegans (C. Elegans). While only 1mm long, these worms can be powerful organisms for neurodegeneration research. Watch and learn how a clever gene-editing system, including injecting a human protein into C. Elegans and inducing a specific mutation, allowed scientists to produce worm models with Alzheimer’s to study neuronal dynamics, transforming the field of drug and therapeutic discoveries for neurodegeneration.
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Music is Medicine:
How Music Can Heal and Rewire our Brain
At the intersection of performing arts, neuroscience, and medicine...
Description: Have your feet ever started tapping along to a live concert? Processing music requires the active engagement of several diverse regions across the brain, not only auditory processing regions, but also motor, memory, and decision-making cortexes. Because of these amazing cross-region connections, researchers think that music stimuli can serve therapeutic purposes for neurological diseases through stimulating and rehabilitating the pathways that connect to damaged regions in the brain. Whether playing a familiar song to resurface memories in Alzheimer’s patients, or using rhythmic music patterns to coordinate movements in cerebral palsy patients, the incredible power music has on our brain and body will certainly redefine healthcare and treatment plans, tying knowledge of the arts into biological science research.