CANCELLED Physiology Seminar: Defective hormonal signaling and Alzheimer’s disease

The development of effective therapeutic strategies for Alzheimer`s disease (AD) must take into consideration the ample spectrum of this disease, which has been associated with changes in a wide range of networks including neurotransmitter systems, neurotrophic factors, immune system, neuroendocrine system, and epigenetics. We have been investigating the influence of the periphery-to-brain communication in health and disease, with a focus in AD. Our studies focus on the understanding of mechanisms by which defective hormonal signaling favors AD and how physical exercise may slow down AD progression and bring about positive outcomes for patients. We recently showed that FNDC5/irisin, an hormone produced by the muscle upon exercise, is decreased in AD brains. FNDC5/irisin corrects synapse and memory defects in AD mouse models and was found to mediate the beneficial effects of exercise in memory in mice. Our study indicates the existence of an interesting muscle-brain axis. Determination of physical exercise protocols capable of modulating the muscle-brain axis in humans can lead to optimized strategies to preserve overall brain health and cognition.

 Details in attached poster