U of L researchers exploring if touch could slow dementia’s onset
U of L researchers exploring if touch could slow dementia’s onset
The study involved mice specifically bred to develop Alzheimer's.
LETHBRIDGE -
A new study looking at the impact tactile stimulation, such as massaging and touching, is having on mice has researchers at the University of Lethbridge hoping one day it'll help those living with Alzheimer's disease.
"If you imagine that you fall and scrape your hand and what do you do? You rub your hand. And why do you do that? Because it feels better. And why does it feel better? Well, obviously, something is going on in your head that is affecting your brain," said Dr. Bryan Kolb, a neuroscientist at the U of L.
"So, the idea is maybe we can use tactile stimulation as a way of modifying brain activity."
The study involved mice specifically bred to develop Alzheimer's.
The mice either received tactile stimulation daily from birth until weaning (21 days) or, in a separate study, they received TS for 15 days beginning at four months of age.
Control mice received no tactile stimulation.
"By doing that three times a day, we were able to influence the onset of dementia – that is we slowed it down – in fact, we seemed to have blocked it altogether in these animals," Kolb explained.
At five and a half months of age, the experimenters used a series of tests to assess whether tactile stimulation had led to improvements in cognition, motor skills and anxiety behaviours and, at six months of age, the degree of plaque formation and hippocampal volume.
Plaque formation in these mice normally begins around three months of age and by six months, the plaque formation in the brain is saturated and is associated with large deficits in cognition, anxiety and motor skills.
The study is also looking to increase knowledge about what happens in the brain with Alzheimer’s and find more therapeutic treatments.
Around 60,000 Albertans live with dementia and the Alzheimer Society is thrilled to see the new study unfolding.
"Touch is one of the first senses we gain in the womb and it's one of the last senses we lose at the end of life," said Colleen Beck, navigator, client services with the Alzheimer Society.
"So, to hear the university is taking on sensory stimulation is so important."
Beck says ongoing research at the U of L and across the country is vital, as the disease can impact so many.
"It's not about when you lose your keys for the car because we all do that – we all misplace them,” Beck said. “A time to be concerned is when we get in the car and we don't understand the car. It's foreign to us – we don't know how to start it.”
Although a cure for Alzheimer's has yet to be found, those working on the study hope to one day introduce it to humans.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Ottawa Police are investigating an attempted break-in at the residence of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's national security adviser, the second such incident involving one of his top aides in recent months.
This Sunday, NASA and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) will announce the four astronauts that will be blasting off to fly around the moon for the Artemis II mission, one of whom will be a Canadian astronaut.
Gwyneth Paltrow won her court battle over a 2016 ski collision at a posh Utah ski resort after a jury decided Thursday that the movie star wasn't at fault for the crash.
When two skiers collided on a beginner run at an upscale Utah ski resort in 2016, no one could foresee that seven years later, the crash would become the subject of a closely watched celebrity trial.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
Every day, hundreds of people are taken into law enforcement custody in New York City. Former President Donald Trump is expected to become one of them next week.
After getting off to a slow start, business is booming at Edmonton's Manchester Square. The development in Queen Mary Park opened in March 2020, right as the pandemic began.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has yet to answer direct questions about a growing scandal of her alleged interference with the justice system, but her deputy premier has spoken up in her defence.
Four of the Vancouver police officers involved in the violent 2015 arrest of Myles Gray – which ended with the 33-year-old dying in handcuffs – claim they were directed by their union not to keep notes about what happened, in violation of department policy.
Mounties are appealing to the public for information related to a mischief investigation involving a statue that was beheaded at a B.C. university earlier this week.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau offered a brief initial response to the final report from the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) into Canada's worst mass shooting, which claimed the lives of 22 people in Nova Scotia in 2020. Vowing changes will come, here's what Trudeau said in Truro, N.S.
Gun policy comments made by then-RCMP commissioner Brenda Lucki in a contentious call to Nova Scotia RCMP officers after the mass shooting in 2020 did not amount to political interference, the Mass Casualty Commission (MCC) final report concludes.
The father of a Vancouver Island man who was shot twice in the head by police during a dramatic incident in Duncan, B.C., on Tuesday evening is questioning why such lethal action had to be taken by police.
A 32-year-old man from Campbell River, B.C., has been sentenced to four years in prison for the beating death of a 59-year-old homeless man in October 2020.
The largest food bank service on southern Vancouver Island is reeling after a fire damaged part of its facility in Victoria, resulting in fresh and canned foods needing to be thrown out.
A 22-year accused of fatally stabbing a teenager at Keele Station over the weekend was released on a probation order just weeks earlier, tied to a sexual assault charge, court documents show.
A Toronto man, whose neighbours vanished eight years ago and left their home completely abandoned, said he's fed up living next door to a property that is in complete disarray.
Premier Doug Ford is slamming federal Environment Minister Steven Guilbeault as a “real piece of work” in the wake of public remarks he made suggesting that Ontario has “no plan to fight climate change.”
Just a week after Airbnb tightened regulations for Quebec listings following a deadly fire, hosts may already be bending the rules. Airbnb now requires its hosts to provide a six-digit policy number with their listing, obtained when a tourist lodging is registered with the provincial government. But a scroll through the Airbnb website suggests users are falsifying their permit numbers to sneak past the authentication process.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
A proposed class-action lawsuit over infamous brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital was before Quebec's highest court Thursday, as victims attempted to remove immunity granted to the United States government.
Ryan Reynolds spent the day in Ottawa as he continues his efforts to buy the Senators, meeting with officials from the city of Ottawa and the National Capital Commission and attending the Senators game.
Two classes at Roberta Bondar Public School in Ottawa's south end were closed on Thursday due to a lack of teachers, leaving parents and guardians scrambling to make accommodations for their children.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Several communities in northern Ontario are currently under a winter storm watch, with as much as 40 cm of snow expected between now and Saturday night.
Donald Trump has been indicted by a Manhattan grand jury, according to multiple sources familiar with the matter -- the first time in American history that a current or former president has faced criminal charges.
Two Manitoba hunting outfitters have been fined thousands of dollars and lost their licenses after a four-year investigation revealed numerous violations of the wildlife act.
The Regina Anti-Poverty Ministry filed a charter challenge against the provincial government for stipulations in its disability program that require seniors to take their Canada Pension Plan (CPP) money out early.
A Mass Casualty Commission report that came out on Thursday following a mass shooting in Nova Scotia in 2020 may have a local impact on the RCMP Depot model being phased out.
Ninety-five deaths in Saskatchewan have been linked to COVID-19 since the start of the year as vaccination rates continue to lag. No influenza-related deaths were reported over the same period.
The study involved mice specifically bred to develop Alzheimer's.
