Can Memories Lost in Alzheimer’s be Recovered?
It’s a question that’s long been on the minds of anyone caring for an elderly loved one with Alzheimer’s disease – once those memories start to fade, can they ever come back?
A new report by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology may have found a comforting answer. The study found that the memory loss associated with dementia may not be a case of memories being “erased,” as has been the long-held belief in the scientific community. Instead, patients with Alzheimer’s may still have those memories but are just struggling to retrieve them.
Memory loss with Alzheimer’s
Alzheimer’s disease is a condition that impacts the brains of older adults. The majority of people living with Alzheimer’s – roughly 95 percent of them, according to the Alzheimer’s Association – developed the condition when they were at least 65 years old.
Though the exact cause of the disease is still unknown, scientists have learned that a buildup of proteins in the brain, called amyloid plaques, disrupts communications between neurons that impact cognitive ability. That includes confusion, trouble with speech and most notably, significant memory loss.
In the early stages, Alzheimer’s memory loss will make it harder for patients to recall certain words or they may forget specific dates or names. People affected by the disease will start asking the same questions or repeating the same thoughts over and over again, as they have a harder time remembering newly acquired information. In the later stages, patients will become increasingly confused and will forget their surroundings.
This memory loss can be devastating to the family members and loved ones who care for people with Alzheimer’s. It’s hard for people to think of their loved one being unable to remember their lifetime of love and experiences together, and to feel as though those memories will be gone forever.
People with Alzheimer’s still forming new memories
While conducting tests on mice to study the affects of Alzheimer’s on brains, researchers with MIT have found evidence that despite the presence of Alzheimer’s, the mice were still able to form new memories. The team believes that these memories are still within the brain, but are not able to be accessed as easily as before.
“The important point is, this [is] a proof of concept,” said Susumu Tonegawa, lead author of the study and the Picower professor of biology and neuroscience for MIT. “That is, even if a memory seems to be gone, it is still there. It’s a matter of how to retrieve it.”
Using a practice known as optogenetics, Tonegawa and his team were able to to stimulate these hidden memories inside of the mice with Alzheimer’s. Optogenetics, which involves using light to manipulate neurons in the brain, is not approved for use in humans. The scientists, however, believe that their study shows practices could be developed for people to help them retrieve those hidden memories.
