Study: Education Allows Brain to Work Around Alzheimer's

Formal education may provide a cognitive reserve that can reduce the effect of Alzheimer's disease brain abnormalities in later life, according to a study reported in the June 24 issue of Neurology.

Researchers examined the autopsied brains of 130 deceased participants and also looked at their years of education and performance on tests of overall cognitive function before death.

The brains of the participants were examined to see how much damage from Alzheimer's disease was evident. Scientists noted the extent of different kinds of amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, which are indicators of Alzheimer's disease.

Lead researcher Dr. David A. Bennett, of Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center in Chicago, and his colleagues found that the relationship between the number of plaques and cognitive performance changed with the level of education. "As people moved up the educational ladder, the same number of plaques had less effect on cognitive test scores," said Bennett.

Bennett said education might make the brain more adaptable and flexible, similar to what has been demonstrated in experimental animals whose environments are enriched with toys and mazes.

"These findings give us additional insight into the long-known but not well understood link between education and everyday memory and learning ability," said Dr. Neil Buckholtz, of the National Institute on Aging. "It may be that education permits the brain already affected by the pathology of Alzheimer's disease to work around that damage and allow an individual to function at a higher level."

Other sources: Rush Presbyterian St. Luke's Medical Center