Is a Cure for Alzheimer’s on the Horizon?
CASE WESTERN RESERVE RESEARCH SHOWS PROMISE
A new study found that Alzheimer’s type dementia can be reversed in animals to achieve full neurological recovery – not just prevented or slowed. Historically, Alzheimer’s disease has been considered to be irreversible. For decades, scientific research has been focused primarily on preventing or slowing the disease’s progression. Scientists at Case Western Reserve University and the Cleveland VA recently discovered a lack of NAD+ (a key cellular energy molecule) drives the disease. And this cellular energy molecule declines naturally with age. The Case Western team discovered that NAD+ levels drop even more dramatically in Alzheimer’s patients’ brains. By using a compound called P7C3-A20, researchers were able to stabilize NAD+ levels in two different mouse models of Alzheimer’s disease. Restoring normal NAD+ levels blocked Alzheimer’s from starting and boosting NAD+ during advanced stages actually reversed brain damage. Animal models fully recovered their normal memory and thinking skills. Restoring brain energy balance now offers a potential path to full recovery. Researchers are now moving toward testing these therapies in human clinical trials.
Government / Legislative Update
HOUSE PASSES BILL ADDRESSING ELDER FRAUD
On June 25th, the House passed the Financial Exploitation Prevention Act of 2025 (H.R. 2478) in a bipartisan vote, solidifying agreement on a measure designed to protect vulnerable, older adults from fraud. The federal legislation enables mutual funds and transfer agents to temporarily pause security redemptions if they reasonably suspect financial exploitation of certain customers who are either 65 or older or physically or mentally impaired and unable to protect their interests. The bill builds on existing state statutes that protect vulnerable investors. Many states have enacted Safeguarding Against Financial Exploitation (SAFE) acts. Under these regulations, broker-dealers and investment advisers who suspect fraud can hold transactions and are also directed to notify state adult protective services agencies. The federal legislation had overwhelming support, demonstrating growing congressional concern about exploitation targeting older and vulnerable victims.
Scam Alert
GMAIL DATA BREACHES MORE COMMON
If you use Gmail or help manage your aging parents’ online presence with the app, headlines about Google’s Gmail data breaches have probably caught your eye. Gmail is hugely popular. More than 1.8 billion people use it worldwide and there are an estimated 140 million users in the US. That scale is what makes it an attractive target to scammers. Stories warning that over a billion Gmail accounts are at risk are alarming, especially when Gmail is the location where you or your parents keep sensitive information including email history, financial documents, and even passwords. One of the services included with a Gmail account is a password manager. The same is true of credit card information. A Gmail address plus a Google password kept in their manager app are often the credentials used for banking and brokerage accounts.
It’s important to point out that so-called Gmail breaches aren’t direct hacks of Google’s backend servers. The exposed credentials are actually harvested by infostealer malware running on an individual user’s infected device. Fraudsters can then step in and compile the credentials into massive, aggregated datasets that can be traded on underground forums. The information that gets into these channels is fuel for the kind of scam that targets older adults every day. The impersonation problem spans multiple online accounts. In a Facebook account takeover scam, hackers seize people’s accounts and ask their friends for money. A Google account takeover goes far beyond impersonation because the account holds a wealth of personal information.
The best defense against a possible account takeover, regardless of the type of breach behind it, is to set up two-step authentication, more commonly known as multi-factor authentication (MFA).
Here’s how you can set it up in Gmail:
- Click the avatar or image at the top right of the browser.
- Click the ‘Manage your Google Account’ button.
- Select ‘Security & sign-in’ from the left sidebar.
- Select ‘2 Step Verification.’
- Run Google’s free Security Checkup to review signed-in devices and remove anything unfamiliar.
- Switch to a long, unique password created by a password manager.
- Treat any unexpected ‘Google’ call, text, or email as a scam, and never share a verification code with someone who contacts you first.
The 2000 Year Old Man Turns 100
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO MEL BROOKS
Comedy legend Mel Brooks celebrated his 100th birthday on June 28th. The director of Young Frankenstein, Blazing Saddles, Spaceballs, and a number of other classic comedy sketches is widely recognized as one of the most influential figures in the history of comedy. He is one of the few entertainers to achieve EGOT status, having won multiple Emmys, Grammys, an Oscar, and Tony Awards over a career spanning more than seven decades. Brooks, whose contemporaries included the late Carl Reiner and Sid Caesar, has opined that comedy is one of the keys to his longevity. Brooks told People magazine that laughing has kept him happy and healthy. In his memoir, he noted that “laughter is a protest scream against death, against the long goodbye… It’s a defense against unhappiness and depression.”
