In this assignment, I have done research on Alzheimer's Disease because in the Labs in week 3 I was very interested in it and wanted to look into it further. Thank you very much for viewing my presentation.

1. Alzheimer's
Disease
By: Ivanka Samarasinghe

2. What is Alzheimer’s Disease?
Alzheimer’s is the most common cause of dementia
 Usually, people who get Alzheimer’s are at the age of
65 or older.
It is a general term for memory loss and other
cognitive abilities, that could interfere with daily life.
Alzheimer's mainly affects losing speech, words,
phrases, and most of all, memory.
Alzheimer's disease accounts for 60-80% of dementia
cases.
What is Alzheimer's Disease?- Alzheimer's Association

3. Parts of the Brain Effected by
AD - Part 1
The Hippocampus, which is inside the Temporal Lobe, helps
us make new declarative and episodic memories. Over the
stages of AD, the Hippocampus, and the Temporal Lobe
shrink, or degenerate. Therefore, no new memories can be
produced. The Hippocampus particularly becomes about
1/3 of its original size, and the foot (the end), is barely
visible due to shrinkage at the latter stage. The whole brain
becomes so much smaller, darker and red in color
compared to a healthy brain.
Week 3 Neuroanatomy Labs, Hippocampus and Alzheimer's Coursera

4. Parts of the Brain Effected by
AD- Part 2
Along with the Hippocampus, Alzheimer's damages and
stops the functions and connections of neurons. It
breaks the process which is vital to neurons and their
networks, which include communication, metabolism,
reproduction, and repair. In the moderate stages of AD,
the entorhinal cortex, and later the Cerebral cortex
which is responsible for language, reasoning, and
behavior, is badly damaged and becomes fragile. These
conditions worsen over time until eventually, the disease
is fatal.
What Happens to the Brain in Alzheimer's Disease?- National Institute on Aging

5. How do you get AD? –
Part 1
To get AD there are two types of proteins involved. They are Beta Amyloid and
Tau Cells.
BetaAmyloid
 Found in the fatty membrane surrounding the nerve cells.
 They are chemically sticky.
 Gradually builds up into plaques.
 The plaques eventually starts gathering around brain cells and build up over
time.
 The most dangerous form of beta- amyloid is groups of a few pieces of
plaques, rather than individual plaques. They clump together and block cell
signaling at the synapses.
 These clumps could also activate immune cells that trigger inflammation,
and swallow disabled cells.

6. How do you get AD? -
Part 2
Tau cell
 In a healthy brain parallel strands that deliver key
materials to the cells have tau to keep them straight.
 Tangles form due to dying nerve cells that contain tangles
from another protein.
 When tangles do form, nutrients and other mandatory
supplies are no longer able to move through the strands,
they eventually die.
 This is because the tau cell collapses into twisted stands.
 The strands then can no longer stay straight and
disintegrate.

7. How is an AD brain compared to a
Healthy Brain?
Alzheimer's Brain Dissection- UNILAD TECH

8. What are the Lost Abilities?
Alzheimer's can cause its patients to:
 Need assistance dressing
 Using utensils when eating
 Loose certain words, phrases, and
eventually have a limited word
selection.
What is Alzheimer's Disease?- Alzheimer's Association

9. Stages of AD?
Brain Tour- Part 2- Alzheimer's Association

10. What Are the Current
Treatments Available?
There is currently no guaranteed cure for Alzheimer’s disease. However,
there is one drug that has been approved for transportation to the UK
called Aducanumab. According to the FDA, this drug is supposed to
reduce the number of beta-amyloid plaques inside the brain. Although
further testing and research need to be done on this drug, many
scientists say that Aducanumab is the start to a pathway of many more
cures for this treacherous disease.

11. Influential Lessons
From This Course.
From this course I have not only learned about the brain, anatomy,
diseases, and injuries, but I have also learned about how events and
diseases can happen. For example, from this course I learned how and
why we see things in this world the way we do. In the Perception, and
Interpreting the Optical world segments, I learned that we view the
world based on our expectations and this has broadened my mind
into thinking that I should maybe go into the future with more of an
open mind. Now that I know about how we use expectations to view
just the smallest things I want to be more open minded in everything I
see and do, whilst still having my opinions.

12. “Be the change that you wish to see in this world”
- Mahatma Gandhi
Thank You Very Much,