New neurons continue to be formed in the hippocampus into the tenth decade of life, even in people with mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer’s disease. The image is credited to Orly Lazarov, et al.

Hippocampal neurogenesis continues to occur well into old age, and in those with Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers found evidence of neurogenesis in people up to the age of 99. While neurogenesis continues to occur in those with Alzheimer’s disease, it is significantly reduced compared to those who have normal cognitive function.

Using non-invasive transcranial direct current stimulation to target the left rostrolateral prefrontal cortex improves memory retrieval.

People who have bipolar disorder may be more likely to later develop Parkinson’s disease than people who do not have bipolar disorder, according to a new study.

Cells in the body are wired like computer chips to direct signals that instruct how they function, research suggests.

Chronic insomnia disorder, which affects approximately 10 percent of adults, has a direct negative impact on cognitive function of people aged 45 and over, independent of the effect of other health issues. This is the primary finding from an analysis of sleep data from the pan-Canadian cohort of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging.

Researchers have made an important advance in understanding the roles that gut bacteria play in human health.

People with mild cognitive impairment who had positive biomarkers for Alzheimer’s disease in their cerebrospinal fluid performed worse on virtual reality navigation tasks. Virtual reality which incorporates navigational tasks could prove a helpful tool in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease for those at risk.

Optical illusions are helping researchers better understand attention and visual perception. 

Finally, this week, while learning a second language has positive benefits for children, there is little evidence that bilingual children have more advanced executive function or improved attention over those who are monolingual.