Amit Das

Neuroinflammation and amyloid load in different age groups of individuals with Down syndrome: A PET imaging study INTRODUCTION Down syndrome (DS) is associated with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study evaluated neuroinflammation and amyloid beta (Aβ) load in individuals with DS of different ages, u...

First amyloid PET data I've seen so far in #DownSyndrome from Brazil (Mantovani et al) - found region-specific inflammation linked to amyloid. Important milestone for global equity in DS- #alzheimers research, exciting implications for future prevention studies that are truly global. bit.ly/3IiLjqQ

ICE holding immigrants in 'abysmal' conditions at Burlington building, lawyers say ICE is detaining immigrants in a Burlington office park building that wasn't designed as a holding facility. Lawyers say conditions there are "abysmal" and "unsanitary"

As ICE ramps up immigration arrests in MA, it's started holding people in office building near the Burlington Mall.

The facility is not designed to be a detention facility. People are sleeping on concrete floors and lack access to sinks for handwashing
www.wbur.org/news/2025/06... @wbur.org

The history of Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer's disease; past, present, and future - PubMed The landscape of Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer's disease (DSAD) research reflects decades of scientific endeavor and collaborative effort, charting a remarkable journey from initial observations ...

This commentary from Maure-Blesa et al. captures the history of #downsyndrome -assoc. #alzheimers disease beautifully. It's been a long journey to get to this point, and there's still a long journey ahead as we push for prevention, but the reason to be hopeful has never been greater! bit.ly/3Hv6qG0

This is a paradigm shift in the way we think about #alzheimers #AD and should be shared widely. #neuroskyence #neuroscience

Bullying students and schools to provoke fear and silence dissent is how we trade democracy and freedom for authoritarianism. This will affect nearly a third of Harvard's students. We cannot be silent.

Research Letter: Recruiting a Diverse Cohort in Genetics Research—Reflecting on Demographic Representation in a Down Syndrome Survey Click on the article title to read more.

Really interesting article from Witt, Shaffer, Torres, & Santoro about recruiting diverse groups of people with #downsyndrome for research. Key point: to achieve diversity, you have to intentionally seek out diversity. Science conducted in a vacuum will fail the generalizability test. bit.ly/3H0yNeI

“Department of Government Efficiency.”

The head of our country’s government is in the early stages of consolidating total power. We must of course reject this, but that is not enough. We have to respond by creating a different and better kind of American politics than we have seen before.

Hi, I write about science for STAT. We've been closely tracking the Trump Administration's cuts. And right now, we're speaking to folks whose graduate school/postdoc offers have been rescinded, to get a sense of the toll.

If anyone has interest, I'm reachable by DM or by Signal at JasonMast.05

Rümeysa Öztürk should be at home in Somerville celebrating Ramadan with her friends and community.

Trump officials will screen NIH funding opportunities Staff at biomedical agency worry about political interference in setting priorities

Trump Administration political operatives manipulating the scientific research process, picking and choosing which communities of patients will and will not get help. What could go wrong?

Isn't the article saying that measures of cognitive decline aren't useful in predicting low-level amyloid deposition in a clinically unimpaired population? I'm not sure we can conclude amyloid's casual relationship with cognitive decline within a population that has no cognitive decline, right?

Understanding key differences among Alzheimer’s clinical trials in Down syndrome - LuMind IDSC Foundation People with Down syndrome face a heightened risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD) due to their unique genetic makeup. While researchers have made

Want to understand the latest #downsyndrome #alzheimers clinical trials in a way that's accessible and easy to understand? Check out this family- and caregiver-oriented explainer that I helped my foundation put together! bit.ly/4ixNqnz

Meeting Kate Where She Is Unconventional Strategies for Addressing Mental Health Needs

I just posted a new blog entry on Medium describing a couple of Kate's self-chosen strategies for dealing with the effects of her daily battle with Early Onset Alzheimer's #DownSyndrome #Alzheimers medium.com/@amykolbtuck...

Thank you so much for sharing!

The institutional Democratic Party is guided by an almost pathological level of conflict avoidance in almost every direction. “What can we do to make the least number of people mad?” is just a bankrupt way to operate.

Evidence of blood–brain barrier dysfunction and CSF immunoglobulin synthesis in Down Syndrome Regression Disorder Objectives This study sought to evaluate proteomic, metabolomic, and immune signatures in the cerebrospinal fluid of individuals with Down Syndrome Regression Disorder (DSRD). Methods A prospectiv.....

“…dysfunction of the #blood–brain barrier and #inflammation in the central nervous system in individuals with #Down syndrome regression disorder (DSRD).” #DSRD could be an inflammatory condition affecting the brain. bit.ly/4bSbL51 [open access] bit.ly/4kQKCDA

The Republican House Budget Resolution's Potential $880 Billion in Medicaid Cuts by Congressional District The Republican House budget resolution would cost congressional districts an average of $2 billion each and could eliminate coverage for 15.9 million people.

Astonishing in the breadth and depth of harm this proposal would inflict directly on 16 million people across every congressional district in the United States. Then add the ripple effects on the health of others in every community, the economic losses, the societal upheaval.

The Incompetence of DOGE Is a Feature, Not a Bug A series of mistakes by DOGE shows just how arbitrary and destructive this slash-and-burn strategy can get.

“the United States is not a startup. The federal government exists to do all of the things that are definitionally not profitable, that serve the public good rather than protect investor profits. (The vast majority of startups also fail, something the United States cannot afford to do.)”

NIH Research Funding Drops $1B Under Trump Administration TUESDAY, Feb. 18, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Federal funding for medical research has dropped by roughly $1 billion this year, raising alarm among universities, m

This is not cutting "waste, fraud, and abuse." Pure and simple, this is undermining the science necessary to deliver better means of preventing, diagnosing, treating, and eventually curing diseases like #Alzheimers, #cancer, #diabetes, #stroke, #glaucoma, etc.

#dementia #mentalhealth #NIH #science

I know I'm a broken record on this, but that’s why silencing APP is such an important therapeutic strategy for DS-AD. Nature has already given us the proof of concept in reverse—we just have to find out if it works in clinical trials. The case for APP-targeting therapies keeps growing. (5/5)

If extra APP accelerates Alzheimer’s, reducing APP could have the opposite effect. Two well-documented cases of people with DS who were born without the extra APP copy never developed Alzheimer’s, reinforcing the idea that targeting APP could delay or prevent DS-associated Alzheimer’s. (4/5)

This supports a gene dose effect—more APP copies mean earlier Alzheimer’s. It’s highly relevant for people with Down syndrome, who have three copies of APP in all cells, just like the daughter in this case. Nearly all adults with DS develop Alzheimer’s, typically in their early 50s. (3/5)

A mother had a rare chromosomal rearrangement, leading some of her cells to have an extra APP copy. Her daughter inherited a full APP triplication in every cell. Both developed early-onset Alzheimer’s, but at very different ages: the mother at 58, the daughter at just 34. (2/5)

A de novo, mosaic and complex chromosome 21 rearrangement causes APP triplication and familial autosomal dominant early onset Alzheimer disease - Scientific Reports Scientific Reports - A de novo, mosaic and complex chromosome 21 rearrangement causes APP triplication and familial autosomal dominant early onset Alzheimer disease

Sometimes tragic things in nature reveal how we might improve lives. A new case report shows how extra copies of the APP gene can cause #Alzheimers, just like in #DownSyndrome. This strengthens the case for APP-targeting therapies to delay or prevent DS-associated Alzheimer’s. bit.ly/3X5QcYS (1/5)

Trying to understand the #MAHA calculus on #Alzheimers: An "amyloid cabal" has taken over AD research. Per Alzforum, "black people with dementia are less likely to have amyloid". To move past the cabal's "agenda", we need more diverse Alzheimer's research. But that's... woke? 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 bit.ly/42V4EXe

@petebuttigieg.bsky.social it's obvious that people want structural change in this country, and it's equally obvious that the changes happening now will hurt almost everyone. Why not define and popularize an agenda to structurally reform the country in a way that actually serves the people now?

There is no ‘amyloid cabal’ in Alzheimer’s research “There exists no ‘amyloid cabal’” in Alzheimer’s research, neurologist Dennis Selkoe writes in response to Charles Piller’s “Doctored.”

There is no ‘amyloid cabal’ in #Alzheimers research www.statnews.com/2025/02/14/a... via @statnews.com

#dementia #neuroscience #science #NeuroSky

So #RFKjr wants to fire people at the NIH involved in "amyloid plaque scandals that derailed #Alzheimers treatment for 20 years". The horror of a deeply uneducated man leading the #NIH aside, that amyloid research *is* the reason my brother with #downsyndrome has a chance to never get AD in his life