The Tau2022 Global Conference is coming up soon — on February 22 and 23!  It was all set for a hybrid format, with most of the speakers having committed to attend in person.  I’m on the meeting’s leadership committee representing CurePSP, one of the organizers along with the Alzheimer’s Association and The Rainwater Charitable Foundation.  Last week we decided to go entirely virtual.  It wasn’t a slam dunk, as we all ache to return to in-person, informal interactions with colleagues from around the world.  

Here’s a rundown of a few of the original presentations.  I’m keeping these blurbs very brief and vague so as not to steal anyone’s thunder:

• A new organoid model grown from skin cells of a patient with PSP mimics PSP brain tissue closely.
• New incrimination of disordered iron metabolism in the pathogenesis of PSP.
• New evidence that hyperphosphorylated tau induces the misfolding and aggregation of normal tau.
• A PET ligand for tauopathies has new evidence for utility in PSP and CBD.
• A new technique, single-nucleus RNA sequencing, has identified two new glial cell types involved in PSP, offering possible new drug targets.
• An FDA-approved AIDS drug reduces tau pathology in a PSP mouse model in a newly-discovered way and will soon enter clinical trials.

I’ll report back after the conference.