Principal Investigators

    S.Debette, H.Schmidt, T.Pastinen, HJ. Grabe, MA Ikram, I.Deary, G.Schumann, P.Sachdev

    Institution

    Multiple

    Contact information of lead PI

    Country

    France|Austria|Canada|Germany|Netherlands|United Kingdom

    Title of project or programme

    BRIDGET: BRain Imaging, cognition, Dementia and next generation GEnomics: a Transdisciplinary approach to search for risk and protective factors of neurodegenerative disease

    Source of funding information

    JPND-JPcofuND

    Total sum awarded (Euro)

    € 3,111,460

    Start date of award

    01/01/2016

    Total duration of award in years

    3.0

    The project/programme is most relevant to:

    Alzheimer's disease & other dementias

    Keywords

    Research Abstract

    Establishing efficient prevention strategies for dementia and Alzheimer’s disease is a major health priority. Since the cascade of events leading to Alzheimer’s disease begins many years before the disease is de- tected, efficient prevention should be initiated early. This requires identifying individuals in the general pop- ulation who are at high risk of developing dementia. Studying markers of brain structure using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), which can show early alterations in advance of clinical symptoms, can facilitate this process. Exploring the genes contributing to changes in brain structure is also an essential step for identifying novel drug targets. We will use studies from Europe, Japan and the United States comprising >35,000 voluntary participants who underwent brain MRI, evaluation of memory and intellectual abilities, and continued monitoring to detect dementia. We will use next-generation sequencing to decipher the participants’ genetic make-up. We aim to identify genes influencing subtle changes in brain structure, e.g. the change in volume and shape of the hippocampus, a brain structure where memories are “stored”. We will use elaborate methods to account for the influence of factors that we are exposed to in the environment. Finally, we will examine whether identified genes predict decline in memory performance and an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

    Lay Summary

    Further information available at:

Types: Investments > €500k, JPND Projects
Member States: Austria, Canada, France, Germany, JPND, Netherlands, United Kingdom
Diseases: Alzheimer's disease & other dementias
Years: 2016
Database Categories: N/A
Database Tags: N/A

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