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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 08/07/2025

First amyloid PET data I've seen so far in #DownSyndrome from Brazil (Mantovani et al) - found region-specific inflammation linked to amyloid. Important milestone for global equity in DS- #alzheimers research, exciting implications for future prevention studies that are truly global. bit.ly/3IiLjqQ

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Neuroinflammation and amyloid load in different age groups of individuals with Down syndrome: A PET imaging study

INTRODUCTION Down syndrome (DS) is associated with early-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD). This study evaluated neuroinflammation and amyloid beta (Aβ) load in individuals with DS of different ages, u...

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Miriam Wasser @miriamwasser.bsky.social · 05/06/2025

As ICE ramps up immigration arrests in MA, it's started holding people in office building near the Burlington Mall. The facility is not designed to be a detention facility. People are sleeping on concrete floors and lack access to sinks for handwashing www.wbur.org/news/2025/06... @wbur.org

wbur.org

ICE holding immigrants in 'abysmal' conditions at Burlington building, lawyers say

ICE is detaining immigrants in a Burlington office park building that wasn't designed as a holding facility. Lawyers say conditions there are "abysmal" and "unsanitary"

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 06/06/2025

This commentary from Maure-Blesa et al. captures the history of #downsyndrome -assoc. #alzheimers disease beautifully. It's been a long journey to get to this point, and there's still a long journey ahead as we push for prevention, but the reason to be hopeful has never been greater! bit.ly/3Hv6qG0

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The history of Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer's disease; past, present, and future - PubMed

The landscape of Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer's disease (DSAD) research reflects decades of scientific endeavor and collaborative effort, charting a remarkable journey from initial observations ...

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Neurojo @originalneurojo.bsky.social · 29/05/2025

This is a paradigm shift in the way we think about #alzheimers #AD and should be shared widely. #neuroskyence #neuroscience

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Senator Ed Markey @markey.senate.gov · 22/05/2025

Bullying students and schools to provoke fear and silence dissent is how we trade democracy and freedom for authoritarianism. This will affect nearly a third of Harvard's students. We cannot be silent.

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 20/05/2025

Really interesting article from Witt, Shaffer, Torres, & Santoro about recruiting diverse groups of people with #downsyndrome for research. Key point: to achieve diversity, you have to intentionally seek out diversity. Science conducted in a vacuum will fail the generalizability test. bit.ly/3H0yNeI

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Research Letter: Recruiting a Diverse Cohort in Genetics Research—Reflecting on Demographic Representation in a Down Syndrome Survey

Click on the article title to read more.

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Chris Murphy @chrismurphyct.bsky.social · 19/04/2025

“Department of Government Efficiency.”

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Pete Buttigieg @petebuttigieg.bsky.social · 17/04/2025

The head of our country’s government is in the early stages of consolidating total power. We must of course reject this, but that is not enough. We have to respond by creating a different and better kind of American politics than we have seen before.

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Jason Mast @jasonmast.bsky.social · 08/04/2025

Hi, I write about science for STAT. We've been closely tracking the Trump Administration's cuts. And right now, we're speaking to folks whose graduate school/postdoc offers have been rescinded, to get a sense of the toll. If anyone has interest, I'm reachable by DM or by Signal at JasonMast.05

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Ayanna Pressley @ayannapressley.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Rümeysa Öztürk should be at home in Somerville celebrating Ramadan with her friends and community.

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Ian Kremer @wolverinebear.bsky.social · 28/03/2025

Trump Administration political operatives manipulating the scientific research process, picking and choosing which communities of patients will and will not get help. What could go wrong?

science.org

Trump officials will screen NIH funding opportunities

Staff at biomedical agency worry about political interference in setting priorities

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AmyKolbTucker @amykolbtucker.bsky.social · 15/03/2025

I just posted a new blog entry on Medium describing a couple of Kate's self-chosen strategies for dealing with the effects of her daily battle with Early Onset Alzheimer's #DownSyndrome #Alzheimers medium.com/@amykolbtuck...

medium.com

Meeting Kate Where She Is

Unconventional Strategies for Addressing Mental Health Needs

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Chris Hayes @chrislhayes.bsky.social · 13/03/2025

The institutional Democratic Party is guided by an almost pathological level of conflict avoidance in almost every direction. “What can we do to make the least number of people mad?” is just a bankrupt way to operate.

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Ian Kremer @wolverinebear.bsky.social · 26/02/2025

Astonishing in the breadth and depth of harm this proposal would inflict directly on 16 million people across every congressional district in the United States. Then add the ripple effects on the health of others in every community, the economic losses, the societal upheaval.

americanprogress.org

The Republican House Budget Resolution's Potential $880 Billion in Medicaid Cuts by Congressional District

The Republican House budget resolution would cost congressional districts an average of $2 billion each and could eliminate coverage for 15.9 million people.

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Ian Kremer @wolverinebear.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

This is not cutting "waste, fraud, and abuse." Pure and simple, this is undermining the science necessary to deliver better means of preventing, diagnosing, treating, and eventually curing diseases like #Alzheimers, #cancer, #diabetes, #stroke, #glaucoma, etc. #dementia #mentalhealth #NIH #science

healthday.com

NIH Research Funding Drops $1B Under Trump Administration

TUESDAY, Feb. 18, 2025 (HealthDay News) -- Federal funding for medical research has dropped by roughly $1 billion this year, raising alarm among universities, m

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 18/02/2025

Sometimes tragic things in nature reveal how we might improve lives. A new case report shows how extra copies of the APP gene can cause #Alzheimers, just like in #DownSyndrome. This strengthens the case for APP-targeting therapies to delay or prevent DS-associated Alzheimer’s. bit.ly/3X5QcYS (1/5)

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A de novo, mosaic and complex chromosome 21 rearrangement causes APP triplication and familial autosomal dominant early onset Alzheimer disease - Scientific Reports

Scientific Reports - A de novo, mosaic and complex chromosome 21 rearrangement causes APP triplication and familial autosomal dominant early onset Alzheimer disease

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

Trying to understand the #MAHA calculus on #Alzheimers: An "amyloid cabal" has taken over AD research. Per Alzforum, "black people with dementia are less likely to have amyloid". To move past the cabal's "agenda", we need more diverse Alzheimer's research. But that's... woke? 🤔 🤔 🤔 🤔 bit.ly/42V4EXe

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Studying Diverse Populations May Require New Biomarkers | ALZFORUM

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 17/02/2025

@petebuttigieg.bsky.social it's obvious that people want structural change in this country, and it's equally obvious that the changes happening now will hurt almost everyone. Why not define and popularize an agenda to structurally reform the country in a way that actually serves the people now?

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 14/02/2025

So #RFKjr wants to fire people at the NIH involved in "amyloid plaque scandals that derailed #Alzheimers treatment for 20 years". The horror of a deeply uneducated man leading the #NIH aside, that amyloid research *is* the reason my brother with #downsyndrome has a chance to never get AD in his life

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Derek Lowe @dereklowe.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Biopharma companies and CEOs are keeping their heads down at their own peril. They should speak up about what’s happening to the NIH and other science agencies before it’s too late. Silence gives consent. And no one should consent to this.

science.org

Stand Up And Be Counted

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 12/02/2025

Less than one month into this administration, and its time to go on the record about how I honestly feel. Simply put, I am disappointed. I'm disappointed in myself, I'm disappointed in my government, I'm disappointed by our politicians, and I'm disappointed by people I respect. (1/6)

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 20/01/2025

About a year back (on LI), I shared four wishes I had for #downsyndrome -associated #alzheimers disease (DS-AD): DS-AD anti-Aß antibody studies, consensus on the staging of DS-AD, blood biomarker tests for DS-AD, and bold action for prevention of DS-AD. Here's the updates going into 2025: (1/6)

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 18/12/2024

Amyloid-ß PET positivity is a key inclusion criteria for #downsyndrome -assoc. #Alzheimers trials. Using a 20 CL inclusion cutoff, Krasny shows 58% of folks with Ds between 40 and 44 years old could be eligible clinical study, and that percentage keeps on increasing with age bit.ly/401DWdq (1/2)

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 06/12/2024

The APP gene is only part of the story of #Downsyndrome associated #Alzheimer's disease. According to Sukreet, Rafii, & Rissman, DS-AD can be thought of as a "vicious cycle of neuropeptide buildup, endosomal dysfunction, and OS due to overexpression of trio genes SOD1, APP, & DYRK1A" bit.ly/4ipEvVD

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From understanding to action: Exploring molecular connections of Down syndrome to Alzheimer's disease for targeted therapeutic approach

Down syndrome (DS) is caused by a third copy of chromosome 21. Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegenerative condition characterized by the deposition of amyloid-beta (Aβ) plaques and neurofibrilla...

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 04/12/2024

Why am I so personally hopeful that #Downsyndrome -associated #Alzheimer's disease is preventable? It's because of two case studies of people with Ds, who happened to be born *without* a triplication of their Amyloid Precursor Protein (APP) gene and never developed dementia during their lives. (1/5)

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 02/12/2024

Regardless of the debate over whether to say asymptomatic, biomarker positive individuals have "Asymptomatic #Alzheimer's Disease" or are "Asymptomatic *at risk* for AD", both the new AA and new IWG AD criteria name people with #downsyndrome as having presymptomatic AD from birth bit.ly/3OC4yLU

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'Presymptomatic AD' or 'Asymptomatic at Risk'? Dx Criteria Disagree | ALZFORUM

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

How do you stage a condition like #alzheimers that is characterized by cognitive impairment in a group of people who already have underlying intellectual disability like #downsyndrome? According to Rodriguez-Hidalgo et al, you build a framework that stratifies criteria by level of ID bit.ly/4fKhriS

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The Global Deterioration Scale for Down Syndrome Population (GDS-DS): A Rating Scale to Assess the Progression of Alzheimer’s Disease

The aim of this study is to adapt and validate the global deterioration scale (GDS) for the systematic tracking of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) progression in a population with Down syndrome (DS). A retro...

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 26/11/2024

Being a sibling of someone with Down syndrome and working on ending Ds-associated Alzheimer's disease means walking a fine line between my role as brother and my role as professional. Read a perspective I wrote about this here: bit.ly/4ePeqN1 #disability #alzheimers #downsyndrome

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His Amazing Self: a brother’s reflection on Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer’s Disease - LuMind IDSC Foundation

A personal reflection about an amazing brother with Down syndrome and the realities of Down syndrome-associated Alzheimer's Disease.

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

After Aß PET positivity (typically around 40yo), people with Down syndrome have PET-detectable tau deposition within 2.7 years, MCI diagnosis within 7.4 years, and Dementia diagnosis within 12.7 years on average. Early onset + rapid progression = massive unmet need. #alzheimers #downsyndrome #DSAD

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Amit Das @amit-das.bsky.social · 25/11/2024

Did you know over 90% of people with Down syndrome will develop Alzheimer's disease in their lifetime? People with Ds are born with three copies of the Amyloid Precursor Protein gene, making it a genetically-determined form of Alzheimer's. #alzheimers #downsyndrome #DSAD

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