This course is designed to familiarize the student with aging and age-related dementias such as Alzheimer’s disease, Frontal lobe dementias and Parkinson’s Disease. Lectures will be given on incidence, diagnostics, and mechanisms studied in cell and animal models and in humans. Sessions will be two hours long – the first hour will be in a lecture format; the second will involve student-led discussions of papers relevant to the lecture topic. Student presentations of current literature and class participation will determine a portion of the grade; the balance will depend on performance on a final integrative examination.

1. Amyloid and AD (Bob Vassar) – M, 1/3
2. Inflammation/oxidative stress and Dementia (Linda Van Eldik) – W, 1/12
3. Presenilins and AD; Developing Drugs to Treat AD (Jeff Nye – Johnson and Johnson) M, 1/10
4. Tau and AD (Skip Binder) – W, 1/5
5. Cellular Mechanisms of AD - ADDLs (Bill Klein) – M, 1/17
6. Protein Misfolding in Neurodegenative Disease (Richard Morimoto) – W, 1/19
7. Neuronal cultures as an alternative models systems for studing the link between senile plaques and dystrophic neuritis (Adriana Ferreira) M, 1/24
8. Synaptic alterations in aging (Dan Nicholson for Yuri Geinisman) – W, 1/26
9. Neural Systems & Behavior in Aging (John Disterhoft) - M, 1/31
10. Familial AD and related dementias – molecular genetics and pathogenesis (Michael Hutton, Mayo Clinic, Jacksonville, FL) – W, 2/2
11. Estrogen and Aging (Catherine Woolley) – M, 2/7
12. W, 2/9 available date
13. NIA Training Grant Day, John Morrison, (from Mt Sinai, New York) Peninsula Hotel Chicago - F, 2/11
14. Neuropsychology of aging and dementia (Sandy Weintraub) – M, 2/14
15. Clinical diagnosis of dementias (Marsel Mesulam) – W, 2/16
16. Functional Neuroimaging of Aging Brain (Darren Gitelman) – M, 2/21
17. Circuits and Plasticity in AD (Aryeh Routtenberg) – W, 2/23
18. Parkinson’s Disease/Neural Transplantation (Jeff Kordower-Rush)– M, 2/28
19. Demographics –Who gets dementia and why –(David Bennett- Rush) – W, 3/2
20. Final Examination: Student Presentations of Integrative Research Proposals -M, 3/7
21. Circadian Rhythms and Aging: Clinical Studies (Phyllis Zee)– W, 3/9