“What you Can do to Prevent Alzheimer’s” by Lisa Genova

For this video application, we are watching the video from TED of What You Can Do to Prevent Alzheimer's by Lisa Genova, here a brief summary of the video. As the video starts, Lisa Genova, an American neuroscientist and author of several books; gives a brief statistic by telling everyone that one in three has Alzheimer's disease. Scientists have done so many researches to find a treatment or even a cure of this horrific disease, unfortunately, there has not been one yet. However, Genova has a way to change the statistics of people suffering Alzheimer's disease, the first proceeds talking about the neuroscience of Alzheimer's, how this disease begins, and the process of how it increases. Later on, she gives her first solution of how to prevent this disease by creating a preventative medicine that can intervene in the process of keeping the amyloid plaques lower rather than reaching the tipping point. Even though, medicines that can do this has been developed and tested; which each has not been successful. She claims that the previously tested medicines have not worked because the patients had higher levels of the Alzheimer diseases. Genova states preventative treatment and lifestyle habits could benefit our chances of not developing the Alzheimer's disease. Genova also claims that there are many risk factors that should be avoided to prevent the Alzheimer's disease. One of these risk factors being lack of deep sleep. Lisa Genova concludes her speech and presentation by pointing out that the true benefit to improving your chances of not developing the Alzheimer's disease, is to increase, enhance, and strengthen your synaptic connections between your neurons. With more synaptic connections being made every day, especially about singular subjects, then it is harder for amyloid plaque to block all your connections to one memory or subject of thought.

The video that we watched applies to two concepts from Chapter 10 of Abnormal Phycology Sixth Edition by Susan Nolen-Hoeksema. I believe that Genova's speech represents the concepts of Brain Abnormalities in Alzheimer's Disease and Causes of Alzheimer's Disease.

Brain Abnormalities in Alzheimer's Disease: One of the brain abnormalities that the textbook provides is Neurofibrillary Tangles. This tangle are made up of protein called tau. Impede nutrients and other essentials supplies from moving through cells to the extent that cells eventually die. (307) I believe it applies to Genova's speech because she explains how the patients of mid-stage Alzheimer's has Neurofibrillary Tangles and inflammation throughout the whole synapse creating a disaster in the neurons and loss of memory. A second brain abnormality that was provided from the textbook is Plaques. These plaques are deposit of a class of protein, called beta-amyloid, that are neurotoxic and accumulate in the spaces between the cells of the cerebral cortex [] and other brain structures critical to memory and cognition. (307) Genova mentions this in her Ted talks when she describes how the beta-amyloid plaque can build up through 15-20 years of age and people would not notice it until it is too late.

Causes of Alzheimer's Disease: The textbook provides a few examples of causes of Alzheimer's disease. One of the major causes is generally genetic traits that are hereditary. The textbook identifies that risk of developing Alzheimer's disease is 1.8 to 4.0 times higher for people with a family history of the disorder than those without such history. (307) Genova also speaks on this subject when she describes the metaphor of a scale, with risk factors on one side of the scale and chances of developing Alzheimer's on the other. Genova states that if you are genetically related to a person or a line of persons who had or have Alzheimer's then the scale tips in the favor in increased chances of having already having or developing Alzheimer's.

Reference:

Hoeksema-Nolen, Susan. The research Endeavor (Ab)normal Psychology Sixth Edition. McGraw-Hill Education, 2014, pp. 307.

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