Dementia is one of the fastest rising long-term health conditions in the UK. An Associate for the Biochemical Journal, Dr Cathy Tournier who is senior lecturer in the Faculty of Life Sciences at the University of Manchester, introduces our range of articles from across our journals to mark World Alzheimer's Month.

“On this World Alzheimer’s Day, we highlight a collection of innovative studies across our journals that offer fresh perspectives on the underlying mechanisms of Alzheimer’s disease. Notably, in addition to well-established genetic predisposition, emerging evidence points to modifiable environmental influences, such as exposure to heavy metal, as contributors to disease susceptibility via epigenetic reprogramming and neuroinflammatory pathways. 

At the molecular level, advances in tau biology are reshaping models of neuronal dysfunction, while structural insights into amyloid-β polymorphism and aggregation dynamics are enabling the development of more selective and mechanism-based therapeutic strategies. The growing recognition of impaired amyloid-β clearance, rather than increased production, has also shifted focus toward enhancing proteostasis and enzyme activity, such as insulin-degrading enzyme. Even traditionally overlooked avenues, like natural compounds or the intersection between neurodegeneration and cancer biology, are revealing unexpected therapeutic potential. 

Together, these developments underscore a more nuanced and multidimensional view of Alzheimer’s disease and highlight opportunities for translational research.”

Further reading

• Oxidative stress – Alzheimer’s disease – DNA methylation: the role of arsenic
  
• Polyamination with spermidine enhances pathogenic tau conformations while reducing filamentous aggregate formation in vitro
  
• Emerging drivers of DNA repeat expansions
  
• Advances in the cell biology of the trafficking and processing of amyloid precursor protein: impact of familial Alzheimer's disease mutations 
• Screening of active components of Ganoderma lucidum and decipher its molecular mechanism to improve learning and memory disorders 
• Untangling the role of tau in sex hormone responsive cancers: lessons learnt from Alzheimer's disease
  
• How does protein aggregate structure affect mechanisms of disaggregation? 
  
• Structural commonalities determined by physicochemical principles in the complex polymorphism of the amyloid state of proteins
  
• Exploring the complexity of amyloid-beta fibrils: structural polymorphisms and molecular interactions
  
• Inhibition of insulin-degrading enzyme in human neurons promotes amyloid-β deposition