London, April 4: Regular intake of coffee or caffeine by patients with Alzheimer's disease may deteriorate their neuropsychiatric symptoms, including but not limited to anxiety, say researchers.

 While it is well known that memory problems are the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease, this dementia is also characterized by neuropsychiatric symptoms such as anxiety, apathy, depression, hallucinations, paranoid, sundowning and more known as  Behavioral and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD) which may be strongly present already in the first stages of the disorder.

The results indicate that caffeine worsened these symptoms in mice with Alzheimer's.

The researchers also discovered significant effects, especially in relation to neophobia -- a fear of everything new -- anxiety-related behaviours, and emotional and cognitive flexibility.

"The mice develop Alzheimer's disease in a very close manner to the human patients with early-onset form of the disease," said lead author Raquel Baeta-Corral from the Autonomous University of Barcelona in Spain.

"They not only exhibit the typical cognitive problems but also a number of Behavioural and Psychological Symptoms of Dementia (BPSD)-like symptoms, so it is a valuable model to address whether the benefits of caffeine will be able to compensate its putative negative effects."

For the study, the team analyzed the effect of caffeine on normal ageing mice and familial Alzheimer’s models.

However, coffee has also been suggested as a strategy to prevent dementia, both in patients with Alzheimer's disease and in normal ageing processes, due to its action in blocking molecules - adenosine receptors - which may cause dysfunctions and diseases in old age.

But "our observations of adverse caffeine effects in an Alzheimer's disease model together with previous clinical observations suggest that an exacerbation of BPSD-like symptoms may partly interfere with the beneficial cognitive effects of caffeine", the researchers said.

 

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Bengaluru (PTI): The Bengaluru police have arrested the prime suspect in the murder of a 24-year-old woman at a paying guest accommodation here on July 23.

Abhishek was arrested in Bhopal where he fled after committing the gruesome murder of Kriti Kumari.

"Yes, he has been arrested," a senior police officer told PTI on Saturday.

On Friday, the video of the chilling incident went viral.

According to police, Abhishek had sneaked into the PG accommodation and killed Kriti Kumari from Bihar.

The victim was staying with another woman.

In the video, the man is seen walking into the corridor of the paying guest accommodation holding a polythene bag. He then knocks on the door and, later, drags a woman out. The victim resists the attack but is soon overpowered by the murderer, who slits her throat and runs away.

Hearing the loud noise, other women in the building come to the spot, but could not save her.

"Kriti Kumari was working in a private company in the city," a police officer said.

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