Solving the dementia puzzle

It’s the joy of discovery that motivates Professor Elizabeth Coulson. Just like a jigsaw puzzle, piece by piece, she is searching for that elusive final part to complete the picture and solve the mystery.

As a Professor of Biomedical Science (Neuroscience) and Head of the School of Biomedical Sciences (SBMS), Dr Coulson’s research is focused on cracking the conundrum of how and why the brain changes in dementia. It’s an inherent pursuit that stems from her childhood.

“I grew up on Victoria’s Mornington Peninsula, and I was always fascinated by behaviour, psychology and problem solving,” Professor Coulson explains.

“For example, I used to ponder things like the minimum number of steps and amount of time it would take to get from bed to the school bus to maximise sleep.

“I didn’t know what I wanted to do when I grew up or that research was a career. In a parallel life, I might have been a dolphin trainer, but I didn’t know that was a job either!

“As a Melbourne University undergraduate, I studied biochemistry and genetics, and discovered that unravelling puzzles at a molecular level really suited my brain style.

“In my Honours year, I explored genetic mutations in fruit flies that caused strange behaviour, and for my PhD I examined a protein that is mutated in people with Alzheimer’s disease,” she says.

“From there, my research journey led me to study nerve cell death processes at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research.”

Professor Coulson then joined a UQ group now called the Queensland Brain Institute.

At SBMS, Professor Coulson investigates nerve cells that help people pay attention and undertake ‘associative learning’. She has found that these neurons die early in dementia.

“I want to understand why this happens and identify the mechanisms and molecules that cause cell death,” Professor Coulson reveals.

“By understanding how the brain functions normally, we may discover how to fix it when it malfunctions.

“In recent years, we have discovered clues to neuron vulnerability through their production of a ‘cell death receptor’ in animals.

“We have also blocked this receptor, called p75, and kept neurons alive in preclinical tests and developed ways to measure their function in elderly people.

“My goal is to build on these parallel pieces of research to test the efficacy of an anti-p75 drug in early dementia patients and people at risk.”

The term dementia describes a range of illnesses that cause a slow decline in the function of a person’s memory, intellect, social skills, reasoning and physicality, and it can begin as early as the age of 30.

It is the leading cause of death in Australian women, and the second overall cause of death nationally, according to Dementia Australia.

The organisation estimates that nearly 488,000 Australians live with dementia in 2022, and expects 1.1 million cases by 2058 without a medical breakthrough.

Professor Coulson is confident dementia has nothing to do with getting older because some people live to 100 years old without developing Alzheimer’s disease.

“I recommend the World Health Organization’s guidelines to reduce the risk of cognitive decline,” she says.

“Preventative measures include staying active, both physically and mentally, eating a Mediterranean diet, drinking alcohol in moderation, not smoking, being social, and managing your overall health and well-being.

“The more we can explore diverse associations between our multidisciplinary expertise and different perspectives, the closer we move towards a medical breakthrough.

“We are fortunate to have links between clinicians and other biomedical disciplines within our faculty and SBMS to increase our chances of resolving the dementia puzzle.

“I look forward to that day when the full picture is before our eyes and the dementia mystery has been solved.”