Unlocking the Neurological Harmony of Music and Alzheimer’s

Published on February 3, 2023

Imagine a grand symphony, where the delicate interplay of notes creates a melody that soothes our souls. Similarly, the complex relationship between music and Alzheimer’s disease has captivated researchers from different fields to tune into this intriguing phenomenon. Through an interdisciplinary lens combining neuroscience, transcriptomics, and epigenomics, scientists have collectively unraveled a symphony of knowledge about the therapeutic impact of music on memory and cognition in AD patients. Their extensive review reveals that over 93% of studies highlight the beneficial effects of music, not only improving memory and cognition but also enhancing social behavior, mood, and quality of life for individuals with neurodegenerative diseases. By analyzing genetic data, researchers discovered fascinating connections between music-related genes and activity in brain pathways related to AD. These discoveries shed light on potential new avenues for genetic research in neurosciences and pave the way for innovative musical interventions to alleviate the impact of AD and other neurodegenerative disorders. So join the research orchestra and immerse yourself in the power of music to heal!

IntroductionThe relationship between music and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) has been approached by different disciplines, but most of our outstanding comes from neuroscience.MethodsFirst, we systematically reviewed the state-of-the-art of neuroscience and cognitive sciences research on music and AD (>100 studies), and the progress made on the therapeutic impact of music stimuli in memory. Next, we meta-analyzed transcriptomic and epigenomic data of AD patients to search for commonalities with genes and pathways previously connected to music in genome association, epigenetic, and gene expression studies.ResultsOur findings indicate that >93% of the neuroscience/ cognitive sciences studies indicate at least one beneficial effect of music on patients with neurodegenerative diseases, being improvements on memory and cognition the most frequent outcomes; other common benefits were on social behavior, mood and emotion, anxiety and agitation, quality of life, and depression. Out of the 334 music-related genes, 127 (38%) were found to be linked to epigenome/transcriptome analysis in AD (vs. healthy controls); some of them (SNCA, SLC6A4, ASCC2, FTH1, PLAUR and ARHGAP26) have been reported to be associated e.g. with musical aptitude and music effect on the transcriptome. Other music-related genes (GMPR, SELENBP1 and ADIPOR1) associated to neuropsychiatric, neurodegenerative diseases and music performance, emerged as hub genes in consensus co-expression modules detected between AD and music estimulated transcriptomes. In addition, we found connections between music, AD and dopamine related genes, with SCNA being the most remarkable – a gene previously associated with learning and memory, and neurodegenerative disorders (e.g., Parkinson’s disease and AD).DiscussionThe present study indicate that the vast majority of neuroscientific studies unambiguously show that music has a beneficial effect on health, being the most common benefits relevant to Alzheimer’s disease. These findings illuminate a new roadmap for genetic research in neurosciences, and musical interventions in AD and other neurodegenerative conditions.

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