Can Alzheimer’s Disease Be Slowed?

The 17th-century French mathematician and philosopher René Descartes thought that the seat of consciousness would be next to the pineal gland, an organ that he considered the headquarters of the soul. For him, information is light passing through the eyes and passed on to the pineal gland, which processes new information for consciousness and mindfulness. His experiments in the physiology of the eye questioned how images cast through light-sensitive cells are transmitted somewhere to become what we call "seeing" in the brain.

Descartes was onto something. Some mechanisms of the brain indirectly do somewhat rely on photosensitivity through the retina. But we know consciousness-assembling happens in many regions of the brain. He was right to think that something like consciousness was seated near the pineal gland and that light was somehow involved with brainwave oscillations.

40Hz gamma-frequency oscillations of light from an extraordinary neuromodulation device

Recent studies show connections between retinal amyloid and amino acid amyloid β-protein buildup in the cerebral tissues of the hippocampus.

There is good news for anyone fearing Alzheimer's disease. Before losing you to a skeptic turn-off of QAnon or weird science fiction, let me say that my curiosity jumped to cloud level before it slammed to Earth with that same initial skepticism you might feel about brainwave modulation as a cure for anything. A small neurotechnology company in Cambridge, MA, has been experimenting with using gamma-frequency light and sound to alter brainwaves and treat neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer's.

As I understand it, the idea is to introduce 40Hz gamma-frequency oscillations of light to the visual cortex as a stimulant; this is expected to reduce amyloid β-protein buildup and activate microglia. Those microglia, the brain's immune cells that hunt brain damage, then attempt to remove damaging cell proteins in the hippocampus, amygdala, and insula. Such gamma-ray oscillations have been shown to be an effective tool in mice.

A buildup of amyloid-beta plaque, just one of the pathogens that can inhibit the ability of mobile white blood cells to digest dead cells, bacteria, and foreign particles, is believed to be responsible for cerebral atrophy progression in Alzheimer's disease. If under molecular timing by the modulation of brainwaves, the immune cells can recognize, surround, and digest the amino acid amyloid β-protein (Aβ₄₂). That might be a way to keep cerebral tissues healthy. Wow! That is a non-invasive way of altering a physiological problem.

Wait! Is light oscillation non-invasive to the brain? If it can alter brainwaves by controlled light and sound, its manipulative actions could also do harm. That is why the FDA is involved with requirements for field testing.

I am OK with field testing as an inductive scientific approach to verification as long as the data is collected in accordance with standard statistical judging. Given that Cognito Therapeutics, the company involved in the development of this extraordinary neuromodulation device, claims that a clinical trial demonstrated a "significant decline in brain atrophy over a six-month period," I am hoping that the next phase of trials brings us further toward a better understanding of the neurological efficacy of brainwave modifications. To that end, now conducting another clinical trial phase across the U.S. with a target enrollment of 500 patients, a verification stage still on the high-hope scaffold of light-frequency neurophysiology science fiction.

My interest comes partly from the fear of the coming of old age that brings on all sorts of ailments, the typical one being some form of dementia. After all, according to the Alzheimer's Association 2022 report "Facts and Figures," a third of Americans between the ages of 75 and 84 have Alzheimer's dementia. Now, that is not a reason to worry, but it does become an interest as one's age passes from one chronological category to the next.

Retinal pathology, brainwaves, and Alzheimer's disease

We should not be surprised about light and sound having some bearing on brain function. After all, circadian rhythms dictate so much information through the eyes to the cells in the brain that, therefore, makes sense since the retina is one of the few source avenues for brain information. And this study has plenty of peer-reviewed backing.

Another recent retina study describes a connection between retinal degeneration and Alzheimer's pathology that focuses on accumulations of amyloid-beta plaque. It is known that Alzheimer's patients have significantly greater retinal amyloid than individuals with normal cognition; hence, retinal optical imaging could be used to detect the buildup of amyloid plaques in the hippocampal gray matter. That is not a coincidental stretching association with the gamma-frequency light oscillations in the visual cortex study. The idea behind this is that by clinically monitoring the retinas, those "extensions of the brain unshielded by bone," early stages of Alzheimer's can be detected for timely intervention.

All this, if corroborated by experts, is good news for future Alzheimer's patients. It certainly relaxes me, an aging person concerned about aging friends and self.