Blood Vessel Dysfunction Linked to Heart Disease Also Impacts Alzheimer's
Alzheimer’s disease is a terminal disease which is also more commonly known as senile dementia. Alzheimer’s is incurable, and varies greatly in the symptoms it presents. Most sufferers of Alzheimer’s are well into old age when they begin to develop it. The most common symptoms are long-term memory loss, mood swings, confusion and aggression and it is thought to be associated with (and caused) by plaques and tangles in the brain. Now, scientists have discovered that individuals who suffer from cardiovascular health issues may be also prone to Alzheimer’s. Patients with cardiovascular issues tend to have a deficiency of nitric oxide in the endothelium. This deficiency triggers an increased production of a certain enzyme which creates plaque in the brain. Therefore, one with any type of cardiovascular disease may be more likely to develop Alzheimer’s. Dr. Zvonimir S. Katusic of the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota said, "If you look at any risk factor for cardiovascular disease -- the standard risk factors like high cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, sedentary lifestyle, aging -- all of these have been associated with loss of nitric oxide in the endothelium, a condition known as endothelial dysfunction.” Studies that are being conducted at the Mayo Clinic may soon reveal more evidence of this link.
Alzheimer’s affects about 26.6 million people around the world and it is predicted that by 2050, 1 in 85 adults will suffer from Alzheimer’s. While there are ailments that slow down some of the symptoms of this condition, there is no definitive cure at this point in time. This is why this new discovery is so important in medical research. By learning more about the causes of Alzheimer’s – which are still not fully understood by medical experts because they are so vague – and other diseases it is linked to may help with finding a cure. By studying the link between blood vessel dysfunction and Alzheimer’s we may be able to also find a link between their cures and prevention methods. For example, since exercise may help slow down cardiovascular health, it may also provide cognitive benefits which delay the aging of the brain.
This article was very effective in its purpose, taking care to cover all the aspects of this new discovery. Unlike many other science articles, it did not merely mention the name of a disease or protein; it rather took the time to explain what something meant before revealing its importance to the article. This gave me a fuller understanding of this topic, allowing me to absorb more out of the article than I would have if it had not been so informative and explanatory. Also, the article made sure to give specific examples of the possible results of this discovery, allowing the readers to fully understand why this new connection between Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular issues is so impactful in the medical realm.
Posted for C. Louka
Posted for C. Louka
Chara did a fabulous job at summarizing this article. I liked that she explained the symptoms and the causes of Alzheimer's because it helped me understand the disease more thoroughly which is important to understanding the article as a whole. She also used statistics which made the article seem makes concrete and allows readers to comprehend the severity of the disease. Her use of quotes also adds to the credibility of the article and gives readers insight into what doctors are saying without having to read the entire article.
ReplyDeleteShe could improve by making her summary a little lighter. I found her summary to be almost as dense as the article itself, and made it difficult to pay attention while reading. In the future, she could try to cut some things out or make sentences simpler. Although she did mention the statistics for the future, I think she should have said something about how we could have this disease in the future. It would engage students reading the review, because they would feel more connected to the article.
I found the symptoms of Alzheimer's to be very interesting, because I had always thought that the only symptom was memory loss. I had no idea that Alzheimer's resulted in mood swings and aggression as well, so it was fun to read about that.
Chara did a great job of summarizing Alzheimer’s itself as well as the factors surrounding cardiovascular disease, giving myself and other readers a very adequate level of knowledge on the subject of the article. Also, I think that she did a good job of explaining the relevancy of this article. I understood from her summary that Alzheimer’s and cardiovascular diseases are found to be linked, but until I read further into her review, I had no ideas of my own as to how this discovery could lead to possible prevention or cures for Alzheimer’s. Finally, I think that Chara included a proper amount of facts and direct quotes from the article because it served to validate the points she was making, but her review did not rely solely on details from the article.
ReplyDeleteSomething that Chara could possibly improve in her next review is the proportion of information pertaining to the new discovery and the background information. In my opinion, her review could use a little more information about the science of the discovery and not surface knowledge. One other suggestion for Chara is to mention some of the “specific examples of the possible results of this discovery” which would add to the realism of the discoveries in this article.
I thoroughly enjoyed reading Chara’s review because of the each with which I understood the fascinating information. The most interesting thing that I learned is the biology that causes Alzheimer’s because I would never have thought that it was a buildup of plague that caused such great memory loss.
Chara had a well-written, informative summary of the article. I enjoyed the fact that though her synopsis was short, it was very informative. She was able to break down the article in an efficient amount of space. Being that the article itself was slightly lengthy, it was nice to see how concise she made it. Additionally, she made sure that someone that may not have even heard of Alzheimer’s could easily understand her article. The article itself was rather complex and talked about things unfamiliar to me like nitric oxide and amyloid beta peptides. Thus, the simplicity of her summary, while also giving an accurate synopsis of the article, is to be applauded. Finally, I really appreciated the facts she added in about the disease in her second paragraph. She did outside research to show how widespread Alzheimer’s is, showing the abundance of research on it.
ReplyDeleteThough her arguments and summary are great, there are a few suggestions I could add to make them even better. I would have liked to see her discuss the experiments scientists carried out to draw their conclusions. In the article it states how they studied blood vessels in both mice and humans. Additionally, it would have been nice for her to talk of the aspects to the article she did not like, as Chara only discussed the better aspects of the article.
From this article, I learned that people with cardiovascular issues are more inclined to developing Alzheimer’s due to certain deficiencies. This is particularly interesting to me as I know how widespread the disease is and it is nice to know that there is much research being conducted on it.
Chara wrote her article on Alzheimer’s and the affects of blood vessel dysfunction and heart disease on the disease. I liked that Chara explained the disease and then gave the reader some statistics. I also liked that Chara’s explained the disease or other confusing aspects and allowed Chara to explain them as well. I think that she wrote a very good review; she first gave some background about Alzheimer’s and then brought in the new information discovered by scientists.
ReplyDeleteI think it would be beneficial if Chara gave all the background information together rather than breaking it up, it made the review a tad confusing. It also blundered the flow of the article. Another suggestion I have for her is to make a connection to the article or add her opinion to the article because it makes the review came alive.
I really was shocked by the fact that Alzheimer’s is linked to cardiovascular heath issues because I had always believed it was only due to old age. This fact was surprising but the way Chara explained it was impressing.
I think that Chara did a great job summarizing this article. I really liked that she took the time to explain about Alzheimer’s because I thought I knew a lot about it, but reading this help me further understand the symptoms. I also really liked that she provided statistics. They were very helpful and allowed me to see how many people are affected by this disease. For instance, I learned that Alzheimer’s affects over 26.6 million people around the world and that by 2050 1 in every 85 adults will contract the disease. Finally, I really liked that she gave her personal opinion on the article she read. It allowed me to understand her summary much more and how she obtained her information.
ReplyDeleteAlthough Chara did an amazing job of summarizing this article, there were a few points that I think she needs to improve on. I wished that she had also talked about what the future holds for this disease. How are scientists going about conquering it and will there be a cure someday? These would really make her summary interesting to teenagers because years down the road we may suffer from it. Also I think that it would have made the article more appealing if she had talked about how scientists came to there conclusions. I would have liked to know what experiments they preformed and how long it took them to come to these conclusions.
One thing I found very interesting about this article is the Alzheimer’s disease is terminal. I know that it rapidly declined one’s health; however, I did not know that it was the cause of death. That point shocked me.
Overall I would say that this article was very well summarized. I enjoyed the fact that she explained the symptoms and the causes of Alzheimer's because it aided in understanding the disease more thoroughly which was most relevant in comprehending the article as a whole. The use of statistics was very well done because it fortified the article and allowed the reader to comprehend the severity of the disease. Her use of quotes added to the credibility of the article. Furthermore it serves as an epitome and insightfulness to readers into what doctors are saying without necessarily having to read the entire article. If anything I believe she could even shorten the summary a bit. In some senses her summary was almost as lengthy as the article itself, and this made it difficult to follow through as I was reading. Sometimes and especially with intricate topics, the simpler the better. Also I believe it would have been good to discuss the future of this disease. With some statistics I feel as though more contemplative ideas could have been presented in order to really hook the interest of the reader and leave the ideas behind this disease relevant to them. Engaging students reading the review would make them feel more connected to the article. I found the symptoms of Alzheimer's to be very interesting, because I had always thought that the only symptom was memory loss. I had no idea that Alzheimer's resulted in mood swings and aggression as well, so it was very interesting and beneficial to be able to be enlightened on such a subject.
ReplyDeletePaige Gordon AP Biology
ReplyDeleteChara did a phenomenal job at summarizing this article. I knew what Alzheimer’s disease was; however Chara did a great job explain this disease’s symptoms and exactly what it is. Alzheimer’s is a brain disease that causes problems with memory, thinking and behavior. Chara explained that the symptoms usually develop slowly and get worse over time, becoming severe enough to interfere with daily tasks.
Chara has a good amount of information in her review, however she could have included more about the scientific discoveries and research on Alzheimer’s. Furthermore, Chara did a great jobs and I did learn some facts from this. It was new to me that Alzheimer’s coincides with high cholesterol, diabetes, hypertension, smoking, sedentary lifestyle, and aging.
I thought this review did a good job of putting the information together in a cohesive manner. Alzheimer’s is difficult disease to describe without getting into difficult medical terms which often confuse the reader. I also thought she did a good job weaving statistics into the article, which are always interesting to see as a point of comparison. I also thought her use of quotes was admirable, as while reviews are good to get the general point of the article, often they leave out quotes from experts which give the article considerably more depth.
ReplyDeleteThis review could have been improved by cutting down a bit on the explanation of the disease. In order to keep readers interested, some of the bulk could be trimmed out. Also, I think a better explanation of the studies that have been conducted about the disease. I would have also probably cut down on the statistics. While I appreciated that she wove them into the article, it could have been less prominent. I thought having them was one of the better things about the review, but the amount of statistics there were was not really needed, it could have been cut down.
I found the explanation of the disease fascinating, because it is a disease that is not uncommon, and people have mentioned it in the past when I was unsure of the scientific causes. Learning about new diseases is always fascinating, as it provides insight to the various intricacies of the human body.