American Brain Foundation

@abfbrain.bsky.social

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We bring researchers and donors together to cure brain disease. #CureOneCureMany 🔬 Fund research. Cure brain disease ➡️ https://buff.ly/xFAbFbT 💓 🧠 Learn more about brain disease ➡️ hootbio.com/abf

Research discovery: The transition between two different microglial activities may explain why not everyone who has amyloid and tau protein buildups in their brain cells develops Alzheimer’s.
Images: Two blended photographs of wildfire and smoke in the forest and the smoky, smoggy skyline of buildings in a city. Text: The potential hidden connection between air pollution and neurological disease. Evidence shows a connection between environmental toxins and brain diseases and disorders.
Researcher Spotlight: Ryan Dhindsa, MD, PhD, 2026 Cure One, Cure Many Breakthrough Award Recipient in Neuroinflammation.
The American Brain Foundation's Brain Squad of recurring monthly donors has raised over $22,000 for brain research since the start of 2026! Our deepest thanks to these superheroes who are making research in search of the next breakthrough possible. You can join this incredible squad of heroes by clicking the link in the post or our bio.
Image: Two nested photographs of neuroscientists in the lab researching the brain. Text: The Importance of Finding Nothing. Big scientific breakthroughs may get all the attention, but discovering “nothing” is surprisingly important. Learn why research with results that don’t support its hypothesis has a significant impact on the field of neuroscience and how it leads to new discoveries. Read more at the link in our bio.
Image: A patient consulting with her healthcare provider. Text: July tenth (7/10) is Chronic Disease Day.
Researcher Feature: Maarten Ottenhoff, PhD., 2026 Next Generation Research Grantee studying ALS. Dr. Ottenhoff is developing a next-generation brain-computer interface that uses signals from both sides of the brain to control two robotic arms at once. The goal is to make this technology faster, more reliable, and practical enough to help people with paralysis regain greater independence. This research is co-funded with The ALS Association.
Research Discovery: A study focused on veterans reveals a two-way relationship between traumatic brain injury and other neurological conditions.
Research Project: Researchers at the Galileo Museum in Florence, Italy, are conducting experiments to try to better understand, and quantify, the way the brain experiences beautiful art.
Research Discovery: Anesthesia, as commonly used for patients undergoing surgery, puts the brain into a state that has aspects of both sleep and coma.
Image: A photograph of a group of researchers collaborating in the lab. Text: Without research, there will be no cures. Donate at the link in our bio.
Research Discovery: Researchers have identified blood-based biomarkers of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Every story matters. Behind every diagnosis is a person, a family, and a journey that deserves to be heard.
What you should know about aphasia.
Researcher Feature: Quentin Devignes, PhD. Dr. Devignes was selected for a 2026 McKnight Next Generation Research Grant in Cognitive Aging and Age-Related Memory Loss. Dr. Devignes will work to determine for the first time the impact beta-amyloid protein buildup has in normal age-related memory loss outside of Alzheimer’s disease. This research is funded by the McKnight Brain Research Foundation.
A photograph of two grandparents playing in their yard with their granddaughter. Text: We have partnered with FreeWill to make creating or updating your will simple, easy, and free. Claim your free will by visiting FreeWill.com/AmericanBrainFoundation.
Selma Blair, American Brain Foundation Global Ambassador and National Chair for Brain Health, addresses passionate brain health advocates in Los Angeles, California.
Research Highlight: Researchers have discovered how immune cells called microglia contribute to the spread of Parkinson’s disease. They also found a way to block this process.
A photograph of a group of people standing together and holding hands. Text: Together, we can end brain disease.
3.4 billion people have a brain condition.
Research Highlight: Genomic technologies have evolved and offer great potential for accurate diagnosis and treatment of neurodegenerative disorders.
Did you know? TDP-43 was identified 20 years ago.
Image: A photograph of children playing in a field. Text: New Research - Having more kids is associated with reduced risk of stroke and brain damage.
Listen to Michelle Heritage, American Brain Foundation Executive Director, on the SmikleSpeaks podcast.
Research Project: Researchers at the University of Colorado Medical School in Aurora have developed a tool to help patients decide if they want to undergo deep brain stimulation surgery.
Research Discovery: A specific “longevity gene” may help protect the brain from the effects of aging, including Alzheimer’s disease.
Research Discovery: An oral therapy for ALS called PrimeC showed positive results in a phase 2b study. It proved to be safe for ALS patients and led to improved functional outcomes.
Image: A scientist looking into a microscope. Text: Webinar Research in ALS: What's Giving Us Hope featuring Merit Cudkowicz, MD, MSc. Watch on YouTube.
Image: A blank image that gradually fades into an image of a walking path in a park to represent restoring the vision of patients with vision loss caused by demyelination. Text: Restoring impaired vision for patients with MS.
Image: A woman sitting with a container of tissues. Text: The brain's response to grief
Researcher Feature: Pavel Yanev, MD, PhD received the 2026 Robert Katzman, MD Next Generation Research Grant in Alzheimer's Disease. Dr. Yanev will be searching for a scientific explanation as to why physical exercise can help prevent Alzheimer’s for some people but not others. He will integrate advanced neuroimaging, genetic analysis, and biological indicators to develop effective personalized prevention strategies. This research is co-funded with the Alzheimer's Association.
Research Discovery: Incidents of stroke among individuals younger than 55 have been increasing.
A photograph of a woman working on a computer.
A photograph of a man riding a bike through a park.
A comic book style illustration of two superheroes with the text, "Join the squad: brain squad".
A close-up photo of a cannabis flower.
Image: The fairway of a golf course. Text: Environmental Toxins and Brain Disease Webinar Featuring Ray Dorsey, MD. Watch on YouTube.
Research Discovery: Analyzing overnight sleep electroencephalography (EEG) data could be used to predict brain health.
Parkinson's Disease Researcher Feature: Arjun Balachandar, MD. Dr. Balachandar will use a brain-machine interface to search for specific “brain signatures” that appear before and during episodes of “freezing of gait,” an understudied motor issue that occurs when Parkinson’s patients are unable to move their feet forward to walk. He then hopes to develop brain stimulation treatments to help patients regain their mobility.
The 2026 NOVA Neuro Conference will be held Saturday, April 25th, 2026 in Boston Massachusetts. The conference will feature Merit Cudkowicz, MD, MSc, Chief of Neurology at Mass General Hospital and American Brain Foundation Board Member. Joanne L. Smikle, PhD, Principal Consultant at Smikle Training Services and American Brain Foundation Board Member will lead the first keynote session of the day, titled Finding Your Why. The American Brain Foundation is proud to be a sponsor of this event.
Research Discovery: Older adults who get ten minutes of daily exercise—even leisurely exercise, like taking walks—have better brain health than their sedentary peers.
Dr. Chen-Plotkin and her team have developed two prototype tests for detecting elements of LBD, including measuring accumulations of alpha-synuclein proteins in in biofluids. This research could help in the development of blood-based biomarkers for the disease. Dr. Chen-Plotkin was also a recipient of an American Brain Foundation Next Generation Research Grant for ALS in 2008 and currently serves on the Foundation’s Research Advisory Committee.
Dr. Higginbotham and her team will employ machine-learning processes to make a comprehensive study of proteins in LBD plasma samples. This will help scientists better understand individual variability in LBD, and thereby help to improve precision in diagnosis, prediction, and treatment. Dr. Higginbotham was also a recipient of an American Brain Foundation Next Generation Research Grant for LBD in 2020.
Dr. Kizil and his team at Columbia University Medical Center in New York City will develop a first-in-class precision therapy that targets accumulation of the protein fibronectin and subsequent neuroinflammation at its source before irreversible damage and cognitive decline occur. This therapy could offer safer, genetically informed, and personalized treatment options for patients carrying the APOE-ε4 allele, which is the strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Bennett and her team at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia in Pennsylvania will coordinate three different laboratories to study the neuroimmune mechanism of how microglia—the brain’s immune cells, which trigger neuroinflammation—transition into an early form called ISGMs (interferon-stimulated gene-expressing microglia). This could lead to new therapies that replace and engineer microglia to treat potentially hundreds of brain diseases.
Dr. Rowitch and his team will study neuroinflammation and its role in multiple sclerosis, particularly regarding neurons that express the genetic marker CUX2. They will identify pathways for clinical intervention and develop approaches to enhance DNA repair after damage from neuroinflammation.
Dr. Dhindsa and his team, based at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, Texas, will leverage AI to analyze millions of gigabytes of data and identify human genetic variations that increase the risk of virally triggered Alzheimer’s disease and neuroinflammation. These studies could enable new antiviral and vaccination strategies to treat Alzheimer’s.
Introducing the 2026 Cure One, Cure Many Award Recipients! These researchers and their teams will conduct groundbreaking investigations hoping to find connections that will lead to cures.
Research Discovery: A protein called DOPA decarboxylase (DDC), which exists in cerebrospinal fluid, could be a quantitative biomarker for diagnosing Lewy body dementia (LBD) and Parkinson’s disease.
Research Discovery: Babies can learn to categorize objects using visual cognition at just two months of age.
Free Webinar: Menopause and the Brain. Explore what research is revealing about the surprising ways hormonal shifts impact brain health. Join us via Zoom on March 24th at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central to find out more.
Free Webinar: Menopause and the Brain. Explore what research is revealing about the surprising ways hormonal shifts impact brain health. Join us via Zoom on March 24th at 8pm Eastern/7pm Central to find out more.
March is Multiple Sclerosis Awareness Month!
March 16 through March 22 is Brain Awareness Week. Make a donation today to support brain science and ensure that brain research continues. Your contribution will help researchers carry out studies that will bring us closer to better treatments, prevention, and cures for brain diseases.
Research Discovery: Chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy improves symptoms of myasthenia gravis.