July 2021 Newsletter
Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Talk on Aduhelm
Please join us for an important virtual ADRC talk on Aduhelm and what the drug means for clinical care and for research. This talk will be presented by Mary Sano, PhD – Director of ADRC, Associate Dean for clinical research at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, and Director of research and development at the Bronx Veterans Administration Hospital.
This virtual talk will be Monday, July 19th at 11am – 12pm EST. Please send RSVP to Maria Loizos PhD at: Maria.Loizos@mssm.edu. The zoom link for the talk will be shared with participants the day before the lecture.
For more details, visit here.
Race, Ethnicity, and Dementia
As dementia researchers place a higher priority on diversity, studies are showing that people of different backgrounds have different experiences with their disease.
The Clinical Leader article “Diseases Don’t Discriminate. So Why Aren’t Clinical Trials More Diverse?” highlights why diversity in research is so important and the barriers to getting more diverse populations into clinical trials. More diverse clinical trials can lead to improved treatment, access to care, and research breakthroughs.
The recent report, “Saying it as it is: Experiences of Gypsies and Travellers caring for family members with dementia” identifies a diverse / minority population which is often overlooked by ADRD researchers. The report authors observe that “very little is known about Gypsy and traveller people as carers, and even less about their experiences of caring for family with dementia”.
Better understanding of the particular needs of minority populations will lead to improved service design and delivery.
Alzheimer’s Association International Conference
AAIC 21 will be held in Denver and online July 26th – July 30th.
AAIC is a global forum to advance dementia science where leaders and experts will share Alzheimer’s disease research discoveries and improvements in prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
Recruitment Partners’ Mike Splaine and Dr. Mintzer will be in attendance so be sure to say hello! Anyone interested in setting up a meeting with them, please email Jennifer Vasconcellos at jvasconcellos@recruitmentpartnersllc.com.
Register for the event here
NIA Renews NCRAD Grant: $30 Million Towards Alzheimer’s & Dementia Research
The National Centralized Repository for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (NCRAD), located at the IU School of Medicine, has been renewed for another five years with funding expected to total $30 million from the National Institute on Aging (NIA).
The repository serves as the primary resource for biological samples for all NIA-funded dementia studies. Since its establishment in 1990, NCRAD has distributed more than 300,000 samples to researchers all over the world, leading to more than 600 publications in scientific journals. Over the next five years, NCRAD efforts will focus on recruitment especially in engaging diverse communities to obtain a broad range of samples from diverse populations.
This funding is important and we celebrate it continuing as it supports research to prevent and treat AD and related Dementias.
To learn more, visit here.
Do you have, or are you a caregiver of a person diagnosed with AD? Do you live in the San Diego area? You may benefit from participating in the UCSD Alzheimer’s Disease Research Study. You or your loved one will receive an FDA approved treatment for AD free of cost. To learn more, CLICK HERE to view the UCSD Study flyer.
Music and Memory Study
The study compares different music therapy experiences and their impact on memory and language in patients with Alzheimer’s disease and Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). To be eligible, participants must:
- Have a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or Mild Cognitive Impairment
- Be age 55 or older
- Generally in good health
- English speaking
- No verbal impairment
- Community-dwelling
- Have a study partner who can participate daily, oversee study compliance and attend online study visits
- Must have webcam or smart phone
If you have individuals in your network that fit this criteria, click here for the study flyer or email us. Or you may contact the Mount Sinai study team directly at (212) 241-8329 or through email at allison.ardolino@mssm.edu or john.mondanaro@mountsinai.org
Brain Info Live by BrightFocus Foundation
Brain Info Live will stream free and interactive brain health videos to diverse communities across the United States. The program is designed to educate, connect, and activate the community.
What’s Happening in the Alzheimer’s Field?
Researchers Using Changes In Driving Habits to Predict AD
Sayeh Bayat, PhD candidate at the University of Toronto has led an experiment to find out whether driving patterns can help predict Alzheimer’s Disease without the need for invasive or expensive medical procedures. The experiment used Global Positioning System-based (GPS) location-tracking devices, on the cars of a group of adults ages 65+ in Missouri. Their driving was monitored for one year. Using the results of the driving GPS data and the driver’s age, the researchers were able to design a model that could forecast a person’s likelihood of having preclinical Alzheimer’s. Their forecast proved to be 86% accurate.
Read more here and find the study here.
Missing Teeth, Higher Odds for Dementia?
Good dental hygiene is not only good for your teeth: It might also benefit your brain, a new study suggests. The researchers at New York University found that adults with more tooth loss had 1.48 times the risk of developing impaired thinking and 1.28 times increased risk of dementia.
Previous research has also identified a link between tooth loss and cognitive decline and suggested a number of possible reasons:
- Missing teeth make it difficult to chew, which may lead to nutritional deficiencies or trigger brain changes
- There’s also increasing evidence of a connection between gum disease (a leading cause of tooth loss) and thinking decline
- Tooth loss may be caused by lifelong socioeconomic disadvantages that are also risk factors for cognitive decline
For more information, visit here.