So many older people experience the tell-tale symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, like forgetfulness and muddled thinking. Yet post-mortem autopsies often find none of the amyloid plaques or tau tangles that are hallmarks of the mind-robbing illness.
Now, scientists may have solved this perplexing mystery: These patients are probably affected by a newly identified degenerative disorder that mimics Alzheimer’s and could be just as prevalent among older adults.
Called LATE (limbic-predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy), it mainly affects the “oldest old” — generally people older than 85. It also seems to be associated with deposits of an errant version of a protein called TDP-43 that collect in brain regions governing memory, like the hippocampus and middle frontal gyrus, as well as areas that regulate emotions and survival instincts, like the amygdala.
Roughly one in four people older than 85 have a buildup of this protein in these sections of the brain, suggesting ...
