Podcast: Jeff Iliff on the glymphatic system

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BrianR
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Podcast: Jeff Iliff on the glymphatic system

Post by BrianR »

I liked this interview with Jeff Iliff which discussed his work on the glymphatic system and how it may interact with various concerns, including Alzheimer's.

STEM-Talk Episode 141: Jeff Iliff on newly discovered system that clears waste from the brain

The technical details start at about 16 minutes into the podcast. See the show notes at the link above for additional descriptions of the content.
Our guest today is Dr. Jeffery Iliff, a professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences in the Department of Neurology at the University of Washington. Much of Jeff’s research focuses on neurodegeneration and traumatic brain injury.

He is the associate director of research at the VA Puget Sound Health Care System and a co-leader for research at the University of Washington’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.

In this episode, we talk about Jeff’s investigations into the glymphatic system, which is a newly discovered brain-wide network of perivascular spaces that facilitates the clearance of waste products from the brain during sleep. Jeff goes on to describe how he is exploring how the glymphatic system fails in the aging brain as well as in younger brains after traumatic brain injury.

Jeff and Dawn also have a conversation about their collaboration on a research project that’s focused on how extreme stressors impact the glymphatic system. Together they are investigating a potential approach to optimizing glymphatic clearance for individuals with acute or chronic sleep deprivation.
When asked about APOE4 interactions, Ilif noted that definitive studies of the glymphatic system are hard to do in humans and he didn't know of any APOE specific information.
Alexia C
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Re: Podcast: Jeff Iliff on the glymphatic system

Post by Alexia C »

Thank Brian R for sharing this podcast. It was very informative and interesting.
As you mention, he did not give any specific information about the glymphatic system and APOE. He did talk about the impact of sleep deprivation on normal cognitive function. He mentions, as we have all probably experienced, that if we get less sleep tonight we will be less sharp the tomorrow (vigilance, decision making skills, memory, etc.) There is a short time scale relationship between cognitive function today and last nights sleep. So hopefully, as more research is done, we will be able to understand better the relationship between sleep and AD. I am looking forward to read more about topic and as homework- get a good nights sleep! Best, Alexia C
Functional Medicine Certified Health Coach
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