New Advances in Alzheimer’s Disease and Other Associated Diseases

Dear Colleagues,

The Alzheimer dementia (AD) is a neurodegenerative disorder that manifests with progressive cognitive impairment associated with a loss of functional autonomy. AD has traditionally been classified based on age of onset into "early-onset AD" (EOAD), which affects people younger than 65 years and accounts for 5-10% of all cases, and "late-onset AD" (LOAD), which occurs after the age of 65 and is the most frequent form. Furthermore, within the context of EOAD and LOAD, three different variants are recognized: autosomal dominant, familial, and sporadic AD. AD is a primary, irreversible and progressive neurodegenerative disease characterized by the loss of multiple cognitive functions typical of such an entity that interferes with the  usual social activities of the patient. In addition to cognitive symptoms, especially in the moderate-advanced phases of the disease, there are alterations in the field of personality, affectivity, ideation, perception, vegetative functions, and behavior. The more or less rapid progression of cognitive deficits, behavior and functional deterioration leads to the loss of autonomy of self-sufficiency with varying degrees of disability and the consequent dependence on others, up to immobilization in bed. The disease initially manifests with mild memory problems, people start to forget some things to get to the point where they can no longer recognize even family members and need help with even the simplest daily activities. The speed with which symptoms appear varies from person to person, the course of the disease is slow and, on average, patients can live up to 8-10 years after diagnosis. From the moderate stage of Alzheimer's, the patient needs constant assistance, which becomes increasingly intense as the disease progresses. This pathology is strongly disabling and constantly increasing, due to the aging of the population, it is one of the priorities faced by social and health systems, due to the impact it has on health and social services.

Currently, the diagnosis of Alzheimer's disease (as well as other types of dementia) is based on symptoms and follow-up, with the important help of neuroimaging techniques and biochemical and molecular markers; however, dementias of various origins can manifest with clinical pictures that can often be confounding factors; Furthermore, the onset of clinical symptoms and signs represents a fairly late event in the natural history of the disease, since the pathological process remains for many years at the subclinical level. The instrumental tests available to date are very useful, but they are not endowed with absolute specificity. For these reasons, the diagnosis of these pathologies is usually carried out with a certain delay and diagnostic errors are not uncommon, especially in the initial stages of the disease; particularly difficult is the differential diagnosis between dementias that present with a similar clinical picture (eg, Alzheimer's disease and behavioral variant of frontotemporal dementia).

The prevalence of neurodegenerative disorders is increasing as our population gets older. Although current research biomarkers have been useful in the understanding of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer’s Disease, more data is necessary to better characterize clinical phenotypes and comprehend the neurobiology of neurodegenerative diseases and further develop efficacious treatments.

This special issue of Brain Sciences aims to present a collection of studies detailing the most recent advances in the field of Alzheimer’s Disease and related diseases. Authors are invited to submit cutting edge research and reviews that address a range of topics in Alzheimer’s Disease and related diseases including the following: epidemiology, neurobiology, biomarkers, genetics, neuropsychiatry, pathology, clinical trials, including pharmacological and/or non-pharmacological treatment strategies. We aim to present advances in neurodegenerative diseases research.

Sincerely:

Dr. Genaro G. Ortiz
Dr. Ramiro Ruiz-Garcia
Guest Editors

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• Alzheimer disease
• biological markers
• neurodegenerative dementias
• frontotemporal
• neuropsychology
• TDP-43 LATE