scholarly journals Patterns of Semantic Memory Impairment in Mild Cognitive Impairment

2008 ◽  
Vol 19 (1-2) ◽  
pp. 35-40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sven Joubert ◽  
Olivier Felician ◽  
Emmanuel J. Barbeau ◽  
Mira Didic ◽  
Michel Poncet ◽  
...  

Although the semantic memory impairment has been largely documented in Alzheimer's disease, little is known about semantic memory in the preclinical phase of the disease (Mild Cognitive Impairment). The purpose of this study was to document the nature of semantic breakdown using a battery of tests assessing different aspects of conceptual knowledge: knowledge about common objects, famous people and famous public events. Results indicate that all domains of semantic memory were impaired in MCI individuals but knowledge about famous people and famous events was affected to a greater extent than knowledge about objects. This pattern of results suggests that conceptual entities with distinctive and unique properties may be more prone to semantic breakdown in MCI. In summary, results of this study support the view that genuine semantic deficits are present in MCI. It could be useful to investigate the etiological outcome of patients failing or succeeding at such tests.

2010 ◽  
Vol 48 (4) ◽  
pp. 978-988 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sven Joubert ◽  
Simona M. Brambati ◽  
Jennyfer Ansado ◽  
Emmanuel J. Barbeau ◽  
Olivier Felician ◽  
...  

2012 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
pp. 101-111 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yanyong Liu ◽  
Haji Akber Aisa ◽  
Chao Ji ◽  
Nan Yang ◽  
Haibo Zhu ◽  
...  

Aging-associated cognitive impairment is an important health care issue since individuals with mild cognitive impairment are more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease. In the present study, the protective effect of Gossypium herbaceam extracts (GHE) on learning and memory impairment associated with aging were examined in vivo using Morris water maze and step through task. Furthermore, the antioxidant activity and neuroprotective effect of GHE was investigated with methods of histochemistry and biochemistry. These data showed that oral administration with GHE at the doses of 35, 70, and 140 mg/kg exerted an improved effect on the learning and memory impairment in aged rats. Subsequently, GHE afforded a beneficial action on eradication of free radicals without influence on the activity of glutathione peroxidase and superoxide dismutase. GHE treatment enhanced the expression levels of nerve growth factor. Meanwhile, proliferation of neural progenitor cells was elevated in hippocampus after treatment with GHE. Taken together, neurogenic niche improvement could be involved in the mechanism underlying neuroprotection of GHE against aging-associated cognitive impairment. These findings suggested that GHE might be a potential agent as cognitive-enhancing drugs that delay or halt mild cognitive impairment progression to Alzheimer’s disease or treatment of aging-associated cognitive impairment.


2007 ◽  
Vol 65 (3a) ◽  
pp. 619-622 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marcio L.F. Balthazar ◽  
José E. Martinelli ◽  
Fernando Cendes ◽  
Benito P. Damasceno

OBJECTIVE: To study lexical semantic memory in patients with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI), mild Alzheimer's disease (AD) and normal controls. METHOD: Fifteen mild AD, 15 aMCI, and 15 normal control subjects were included. Diagnosis of AD was based on DSM-IV and NINCDS-ADRDA criteria, and that of aMCI, on the criteria of the International Working Group on Mild Cognitive Impairment, using CDR 0.5 for aMCI and CDR 1 for mild AD. All subjects underwent semantic memory tests (Boston Naming-BNT, CAMCOG Similarities item), Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test (RAVLT), Mini-Mental Status Examination (MMSE), neuropsychological tests (counterproofs), and Cornell Scale for Depression in Dementia. Data analysis used Mann-Whitney test for intergroup comparisons and Pearson's coefficient for correlations between memory tests and counterproofs (statistical significance level was p<0.05). RESULTS: aMCI patients were similar to controls on BNT and Similarities, but worse on MMSE and RAVLT. Mild AD patients scored significantly worse than aMCI and controls on all tests. CONCLUSION: aMCI impairs episodic memory but tends to spare lexical semantic system, which can be affected in the early phase of AD.


2014 ◽  
Vol 26 (12) ◽  
pp. 2029-2036 ◽  
Author(s):  
David C Steffens ◽  
Douglas R McQuoid ◽  
Guy G Potter

ABSTRACTBackground:Memory impairment in geriatric depression is understudied, but may identify individuals at risk for development of dementia and Alzheimer's disease (AD). Using a neuropsychologically based definition of amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) in patients with geriatric depression, we hypothesized that patients with aMCI, compared with those without it, would have increased incidence of both dementia and AD.Methods:Participants were aged 60 years and older and consisted of depressed participants and non-depressed volunteer controls. The depressed cohort met criteria for unipolar major depression. All participants were free of dementia and other neurological illness at baseline. At study entry, participants were administered a standardized clinical interview, a battery of neurocognitive tests, and provided a blood sample for determination of apolipoprotein E genotype. A cognitive diagnosis was assigned by a panel of experts who convened annually and reviewed available clinical, neuropsychological and laboratory data to achieve a consensus cognitive diagnosis to determine a consensus diagnosis. Survival analysis examined the association between aMCI and later dementia (all-cause) and AD.Results:Among 295 depressed individuals, 63 (21.36%) met criteria for aMCI. Among 161 non-depressed controls, four (2.48%) met aMCI criteria. Participants were followed for 6.28 years on average. Forty-three individuals developed dementia, including 40 (13.6%) depressed and three (1.9%) control participants. Both aMCI and age were associated with incident dementia and AD.Conclusions:The presence of aMCI is a poor prognostic sign among patients with geriatric depression. Clinicians should carefully screen elderly depressed adults for memory impairment.


2004 ◽  
Vol 17 (3) ◽  
pp. 188-195 ◽  
Author(s):  
Armando Estévez-González ◽  
Carmen García-Sánchez ◽  
Anunciación Boltes ◽  
Pilar Otermín ◽  
Berta Pascual-Sedano ◽  
...  

2013 ◽  
Vol 39 (5) ◽  
pp. 536-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuela Kerer ◽  
Josef Marksteiner ◽  
Hartmann Hinterhuber ◽  
Guerino Mazzola ◽  
Georg Kemmler ◽  
...  

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