From Molecules to Mind: Early Career Research at the ARUK Conference

At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Athina Grigoriou from the University of Dundee presents research on the cytoplasmic to nuclear translocation of DNA damage repair proteins in Alzheimer’s disease and Dementia with Lewy bodies.

DNA damage is increasingly recognised as an early feature of neurodegeneration. This study investigates how key DNA repair proteins, including Ku70 and APEX1, move from the cytoplasm into the nucleus in Alzheimer’s disease and Lewy body dementia. These shifts in cellular location may reflect altered repair responses and contribute to disease progression.

Using human brain tissue, immunohistochemistry and cellular models, the work explores how DNA repair pathways interact with synuclein pathology and tau related mechanisms. Understanding these molecular changes could help clarify whether disrupted DNA repair is a driver of neurodegeneration or a response to accumulating pathology.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and advances in dementia science.

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Sophie K. Llewellyn from UCL presents research on immunofluorescent identification of leptomeningeal lymphatic endothelial cells (LLECs) and their potential role in tau clearance.

Tau accumulation is a key feature of Alzheimer’s disease, but how it is cleared from the brain is still not fully understood. This project uses advanced immunofluorescence techniques to identify and characterise LLECs, specialised lymphatic cells located in the meninges, and investigate whether they contribute to removing tau from the central nervous system.

By refining staining strategies and validating cellular markers, this work strengthens the tools needed to study brain lymphatics and their role in neurodegenerative disease. Understanding these clearance pathways could help reveal new therapeutic targets aimed at limiting tau spread in Alzheimer’s disease.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage showcasing early career researchers and the latest advances in dementia science. #arukconf #glymphaticsystem

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Helen Jolly from the University of Oxford presents research exploring molecular insights on Alzheimer’s disease and resilience at subcellular resolution.

Rather than only measuring overall protein levels, this work investigates where proteins are located inside cells and how their subcellular distribution changes in Alzheimer’s disease. Using advanced proteomics, spatial fractionation, and probabilistic modelling, the team maps protein localisation shifts that may reflect disease mechanisms or resilience pathways.

By identifying changes in protein organisation within neurons, this research aims to uncover molecular signatures linked not only to pathology but also to resistance against cognitive decline. Understanding these fine scale cellular changes could help reveal new therapeutic targets and explain why some individuals show resilience despite Alzheimer’s pathology.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and advances in Alzheimer’s disease science.

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Ellen Reed from The Rosalind Franklin Institute presents research on how glycans facilitate extracellular vesicle mediated spread of tau pathology.

Tau spread between cells is a key feature of Alzheimer’s disease progression. This work explores how sugars on the cell surface, known as glycans, influence the way extracellular vesicles transfer tau between cells. By modifying these glycans, the team investigates whether tau “seeding” and propagation can be reduced.

Understanding these molecular mechanisms could open new avenues for targeting the spread of tau pathology in Alzheimer’s disease.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and advances in dementia science.

#alzheimersdisease #science #dementiaresearch #dementia

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Samuel Maddox from the University of East Anglia presents research showing how thalamocortical disconnection may predict conversion to cognitive impairment in preclinical Alzheimer’s disease.

Using advanced brain connectivity and neuroimaging analysis, this work identifies early changes in communication between the thalamus and cortex, before symptoms appear. These findings could help researchers detect Alzheimer’s disease earlier and improve understanding of how brain network disruption drives cognitive decline.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and new advances in Alzheimer’s disease science.

#dementiaresearch #alzheimersdisease

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Caitlin Illingworth presents research using functional near infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and cognitive language tasks to improve dementia detection across different language backgrounds.

Standard verbal fluency tests can disadvantage bilingual and multilingual individuals, making diagnosis less accurate. This study combines brain imaging with language tasks in English and Somali speakers to see how brain activation differs, and explores community perspectives on using neuroimaging in dementia research.

The findings highlight both biological differences in brain activation during language tasks and the importance of community engagement to ensure dementia diagnostics work fairly across diverse populations.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage supporting early career researchers and sharing new advances in dementia science.

#alzheimersdisease #arukconf

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Luke Weymouth presents his poster exploring how DNA methylation in the human cortex relates to APOE genotype and Braak stage, a key measure of Alzheimer’s disease progression.

This research uses large scale meta analysis to identify epigenetic changes linked to Alzheimer’s pathology, helping improve understanding of how genetic risk factors like APOE influence disease mechanisms.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and advances in Alzheimer’s disease science.

#dementiaresearch #alzheimersdisease #academiclife #science #dementia

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Kafayat Adeoye presents her poster on using AI driven ICU physiological monitoring to predict long term vascular dementia risk after traumatic brain injury.

This research uses continuous ICU data and machine learning to identify early warning signs that could help clinicians understand dementia risk years earlier and improve patient outcomes.

This clip is part of Dementia Researcher coverage highlighting early career researchers and new advances in dementia science.

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At the Alzheimer’s Research UK Conference, Viktorija Smith presents her poster, “Disentangling cognitive severity and phenotype across dementia syndromes with positive Alzheimer’s biomarkers.”

In this short clip, she explains how people with positive Alzheimer’s biomarkers can show very different dementia syndromes and levels of cognitive severity, highlighting the complexity of diagnosis and the importance of biomarker informed research.

This video is part of Dementia Researcher coverage supporting early career researchers and sharing #dementiaresearch #neurofeedback #alzheimersdisease the latest Alzheimer’s disease and dementia research.

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