Baycrest

BrainMatters FALL/WINTER 2019 11 Baycrest is home to CCNA's scientific headquarters and the upcoming centre aligns with a major CCNA initiative, the launch of a new national prevention platform that will recruit individuals at a greater risk of dementia, and provide them an opportunity to undertake combination interventions to prevent its progression. ADVANCING THERAPIES "Understanding the brain and Alzheimer's disease lags 100 years behind our understanding of diabetes," says Dr. Chertkow. "Brain sciences have only developed in the past decades. Despite progress, the cause or causes of Alzheimer's disease remain unknown, although there are promising leads." Researchers, including those at Baycrest's Rotman Research Institute, are making great strides towards understanding changes in the brain as people age, which also contributes to developing effective therapies and finding a cure. For example, Dr. Jed Meltzer, RRI scientist and Canada Research Chair in Interventional Cognitive Neuroscience, has discovered that a person's brainwaves move differently among young adults, older adults who are healthy and older adults who have mild cognitive impairment (or are potentially in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease), even when they aren't doing a specific task. "Our work identifies a potential biomarker that indicates when the brain cells start to malfunction and opens the door to implementing targeted brain treatments during earlier stages of neurodegenerative disorders," says Dr. Meltzer. IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF LIFE Family members who provide care to people living with dementia may experience high levels of stress, have a higher risk of injury and depression, and are susceptible to financial and employment difficulties. There is more that can be done to ensure that caregivers have the supports and information they need to reduce their stress and improve the quality of life of the person with dementia for whom they are caring, says Dr. Reichman. To help family caregivers cope with the physical and emotional demands of looking after a loved one, Baycrest offers support through the Koschitzky Support Centre for Family Caregivers and Older Adults. Besides offering a range of programs for different groups, the centre continues to spearhead new and creative ways of supporting these caregivers. "There are very few studies providing a service and investigating whether it is beneficial for dementia caregivers," says Dr. Adriana Shnall, lead of the Koschitzky Centre for Innovations in Family Caregiving and Program Director of Baycrest@Home and Clinical Programs at Baycrest. "Our studies look at whether the interventions are feasible and whether they make a difference in the lives of family caregivers." Read about the latest research and innovations being done at Baycrest in the news section. Visit baycrest.org. Dr. Jed Meltzer

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