{"id":2012,"date":"2017-06-30T13:05:32","date_gmt":"2017-06-30T20:05:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/"},"modified":"2023-11-26T08:22:13","modified_gmt":"2023-11-26T16:22:13","slug":"why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/","title":{"rendered":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain"},"content":{"rendered":"\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n\n \n
\n \n
\n\n \n Press Release<\/span>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n \n
\n\n \n

Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain<\/h1>\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n \n
\n \n June 30, 2017<\/span>\n <\/div>\n \n \n
\n\n \n
<\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/path><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/path><\/path><\/g><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/svg><\/span><\/a><\/div>
<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n<\/div>\n \n <\/div>\n\n \n
\n\n \n \n \n
\n \n \n \n \n \n\n \n
USC researchers believe that stiffening blood vessels and low blood flow in the brain is an early indication of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. (Illustration\/iStock)<\/figcaption>\n <\/figure>\n \n \n \n\n<\/div>\n \n\n <\/div><\/div>\n\r\n\r\n\n\n \n \n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
\n\n \n
\n \n
\n\n \n

USC researchers plan to explore whether constricted vessels could be targeted by existing drugs that were approved for treating other health conditions<\/h2>\n

A combination of high blood pressure and decreased blood flow inside the brain may spur the buildup of harmful plaque and signal the onset of dementia, USC researchers have found.
\n\u201cIf you have problems with the blood vessels in the brain, then you\u2019re going to end up with difficulty with thinking skills, cognition, memory, and ultimately this can be related to other brain pathologies such as Alzheimer\u2019s disease,\u201d said\u00a0Daniel Nation<\/a>, lead author of the study and an assistant professor of psychology at the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences.
\nFor the study published June 1 in the journal Brain, Nation used patient data from a national medical database, the\u00a0Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative<\/a>\u00a0housed at the Keck School of Medicine at USC, to explore whether constricted blood flow contributes to the buildup of amyloid plaque and, consequently, to the onset of dementia. He also determined a new way to calculate cerebrovascular resistance \u2014 a stiffening of the vessels that results from high blood pressure and low blood flow.
\nThe brain\u2019s blood vessels function as a plumbing system that delivers nutrients and oxygen to feed the brain cells and then flushes away any waste that the cells cannot use. The metabolic waste secreted by cells includes protein fragments \u2014 amyloid \u2014 that a healthy brain breaks down and expels by pulsating blood through its vessels.
\nThe brain tightens or relaxes its vessels to maintain blood flow as it adjusts for changes in blood pressure. However, the brain vessels in Alzheimer\u2019s patients are stiff and tight, inhibiting blood flow and enabling the sticky amyloid to accumulate, Nation found.
\n\u201cThe idea of cerebrovascular resistance converges on the notion that the blood vessels in Alzheimer\u2019s brains are in this hyper-contracted state,\u201d Nation said. \u201cFor many different reasons, the contracting blood vessels are resistant to opening up and really letting the blood in.\u201d
\nBlood pressure and blood flow measures alone do not predict dementia as well as when they are examined together.
\n\u201cWhen blood pressure goes up or down, the brain vessels accommodate so that blood flow will remain fixed,\u201d Nation said. \u201cSo if you don\u2019t measure blood pressure and blood flow together, then it is basically masking all of these important changes in vascular resistance, and it is very difficult to see the vessel changes that underlie this.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dementia and Alzheimer\u2019s: A rising crisis<\/h3>\n

Alzheimer\u2019s is considered one of the greatest health challenges of the century. The fifth leading cause of death for those 65 years and older, Alzheimer\u2019s affects an estimated 5.4 million Americans \u2014 about 1 in 3 seniors, according to the\u00a0Centers for Disease Control and Prevention<\/a>. The\u00a0USC Schaeffer Center for Health Policy and Economics predicts<\/a>\u00a0the number of U.S. patients diagnosed with Alzheimer\u2019s will more than double to 9.1 million in the next 35 years.
\nAs a research institution devoted to promoting lifelong health, USC has more than 70 researchers dedicated to the prevention, treatment and potential cure of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. USC researchers across a range of disciplines are examining the health, societal and political effects and implications of the disease.
\nIn the past decade, the\u00a0National Institute on Aging<\/a>\u00a0at the National Institutes of Health has nearly doubled its investment in USC research. The investments include an Alzheimer Disease Research Center.
\nNation\u2019s lab<\/a>\u00a0at USC Dornsife is part of the multidisciplinary effort. He focuses on understanding cognitive decline associated with age-related changes in vascular structure and function. Vascular dementia is at the root of an estimated 10 percent of all Alzheimer\u2019s cases, according to the\u00a0Alzheimer\u2019s Association<\/a>.<\/p>\n

High resistance in Alzheimer\u2019s patients<\/strong><\/h3>\n

To measure resistance in the brain\u2019s vessels, Nation developed an index that represents a ratio of average blood pressure to regional cerebral blood flow. A high index ranking for resistance indicates that amyloid is building up and that the patient is progressing toward dementia, Nation said.
\nThe Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative database used for the study is an extensive repository of medical data from an estimated 1,000 volunteers age 55\u201390. The data include results of genetic, memory and cognitive tests, brain scans and blood biomarker information.
\nNation used data on three groups of volunteers: 112 men and women who did not have any amyloid buildup in their brains, 87 who did and 33 who had Alzheimer\u2019s. The researchers controlled for characteristics including whether the people were carriers of the Alzheimer\u2019s gene, ApoE4, which can significantly raise the risk of the disease.
\nNation found that the 33 people with Alzheimer\u2019s had lower blood flow in their brains than the people without dementia. These blood flow changes were undetectable in the earlier stages of the disease, when amyloid was accumulating, but there were no obvious signs of memory loss.
\nThe people with Alzheimer\u2019s also measured much higher on the cerebrovascular resistance index.
\nAmyloid-positive patients\u2019 cognition worsened over time. Nation found that just two years after their initial examination, they were more likely to experience accelerated cognitive decline and progression to clinical dementia.<\/p>\n

Our findings suggest that change in resistance may be an early and key phenomenon in the brain that\u2019s closely linked to the symptoms of cognitive decline in the future.
\n-Daniel Nation<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Treatment possibilities<\/h3>\n

In recent months, major pharmaceutical companies aiming for a cure have halted testing of Alzheimer\u2019s drugs mid-trial due to poor results. However, recent studies point to a promising option to delay the onset of dementia or Alzheimer\u2019s: drugs already on the market and approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for other purposes.
\nAmong the most promising are cholesterol-lowering statins \u2014 a possibility reinforced by a recent meta-data\u00a0study led by USC Schaeffer Center<\/a>\u00a0\u2014 and blood pressure-lowering drugs known as angiotensin receptor blockers \u2014 a possibility highlighted by Nation and co-author Jean Ho in a recent study published in\u00a0Alzheimer\u2019s Research & Therapy<\/a>.
\nNation found that people taking blood pressure-lowering drugs have better memories than people who have elevated blood pressure and are taking other drugs. A subclass of these drugs can cross the blood-brain barrier \u2014 the filtration mechanism in the capillaries that prevents toxins from entering the brain.
\nNation aims to refine how he measures vascular resistance so that he can test it in older adults in the lab. By measuring the index dynamically with brain scanners, he will track how blood pressure-lowering drugs affect vascular resistance from moment to moment in the brains of people at risk of Alzheimer\u2019s.
\nThen, he said, he will work toward answering the next important question: \u201cIf we can change vascular resistance, does that change someone\u2019s risk profile for going on to get dementia?\u201d
\nUSC graduate student Belinda Yew was a co-author of the cerebrovascular resistance study published in\u00a0Brain<\/em>. The research was supported by National Institutes of Health grants P50 AG005142 (an estimated $7.1 million grant that covered 10 percent of the study\u2019s costs) and P01 AG052350 (an estimated $8.9 million grant that covered 20 percent of the study\u2019s costs). The NIH grants also support a series of studies by Nation.
\nThe remaining 70 percent of the\u00a0study\u2019s costs were covered by the Alzheimer\u2019s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative and a U.S. Department of Defense grant (W81XWH-12-2-0012).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/div>\n <\/div>\n\n\n <\/div><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":2013,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"advgb_blocks_editor_width":"","advgb_blocks_columns_visual_guide":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[489],"class_list":["post-2012","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-press-release","tag-alzheimers-disease"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nWhy dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Newsroom\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/KECKschoolUSC\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"600\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"447\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Keck School Media Relations\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@KeckSchool_USC\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@KeckSchool_USC\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Keck School Media Relations\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d73b4e3cd2ac264049e281da8db4b1d6\"},\"headline\":\"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":8,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Alzheimer\u2019s Disease\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Press Release\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/\",\"name\":\"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg\",\"width\":600,\"height\":447,\"caption\":\"USC researchers believe that stiffening blood vessels and low blood flow in the brain is an early indication of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. (Illustration\\\/iStock)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/\",\"name\":\"Newsroom\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Keck School of Medicine of USC\",\"alternateName\":\"Keck School of Medicine\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/keck-school-of-medicine-logo-696-square.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/68\\\/2023\\\/11\\\/keck-school-of-medicine-logo-696-square.jpg\",\"width\":696,\"height\":696,\"caption\":\"Keck School of Medicine of USC\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/KECKschoolUSC\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/KeckSchool_USC\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.linkedin.com\\\/school\\\/keckschoolusc\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/KeckSchoolUSC\\\/\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.youtube.com\\\/channel\\\/UCpL1E1W5ZTfkc5iihwLSFEA\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.tiktok.com\\\/@keckschoolusc\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/d73b4e3cd2ac264049e281da8db4b1d6\",\"name\":\"Keck School Media Relations\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Keck School Media Relations\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/keck.usc.edu\\\/news\\\/author\\\/ksommarketing\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain","og_url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/","og_site_name":"Newsroom","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/KECKschoolUSC\/","article_published_time":"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00","article_modified_time":"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00","og_image":[{"width":600,"height":447,"url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Keck School Media Relations","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@KeckSchool_USC","twitter_site":"@KeckSchool_USC","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/"},"author":{"name":"Keck School Media Relations","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d73b4e3cd2ac264049e281da8db4b1d6"},"headline":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain","datePublished":"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00","dateModified":"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/"},"wordCount":8,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg","keywords":["Alzheimer\u2019s Disease"],"articleSection":["Press Release"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/","url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/","name":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg","datePublished":"2017-06-30T20:05:32+00:00","dateModified":"2023-11-26T16:22:13+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web.jpg","width":600,"height":447,"caption":"USC researchers believe that stiffening blood vessels and low blood flow in the brain is an early indication of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. (Illustration\/iStock)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/why-dementia-causing-plaques-become-trapped-in-the-brain\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Why dementia-causing plaques become trapped in the brain"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#website","url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/","name":"Newsroom","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#organization","name":"Keck School of Medicine of USC","alternateName":"Keck School of Medicine","url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/keck-school-of-medicine-logo-696-square.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/keck-school-of-medicine-logo-696-square.jpg","width":696,"height":696,"caption":"Keck School of Medicine of USC"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/KECKschoolUSC\/","https:\/\/x.com\/KeckSchool_USC","https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/school\/keckschoolusc\/","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/KeckSchoolUSC\/","https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/channel\/UCpL1E1W5ZTfkc5iihwLSFEA","https:\/\/www.tiktok.com\/@keckschoolusc"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/#\/schema\/person\/d73b4e3cd2ac264049e281da8db4b1d6","name":"Keck School Media Relations","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/6b319538a9488520b1cb0d3154ed0c97262d4d94d2b325f8260b196b9083b893?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Keck School Media Relations"},"url":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/author\/ksommarketing\/"}]}},"author_meta":{"display_name":"Keck School Media Relations","author_link":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/author\/ksommarketing\/"},"featured_img":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/68\/2023\/11\/Blood_Vessel-Brain-web-300x224.jpg","coauthors":[],"tax_additional":{"categories":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/category\/press-release\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Press Release<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Press Release<\/span>"]},"tags":{"linked":["<a href=\"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/category\/press-release\/\" class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Alzheimer\u2019s Disease<\/a>"],"unlinked":["<span class=\"advgb-post-tax-term\">Alzheimer\u2019s Disease<\/span>"]}},"comment_count":"0","relative_dates":{"created":"Posted 9 years ago","modified":"Updated 3 years ago"},"absolute_dates":{"created":"Posted on June 30, 2017","modified":"Updated on November 26, 2023"},"absolute_dates_time":{"created":"Posted on June 30, 2017 1:05 pm","modified":"Updated on November 26, 2023 8:22 am"},"featured_img_caption":"USC researchers believe that stiffening blood vessels and low blood flow in the brain is an early indication of Alzheimer\u2019s disease. (Illustration\/iStock)","series_order":"","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2012","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/168"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2012"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2012\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2013"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2012"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2012"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/keck.usc.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2012"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}