SEX DIFFERENCES IN THE PROGRESSION OF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: IS MENOPAUSE THE KEY? - PROJECT SUMMARY THE OVER…
Federal financial assistance recorded from USAspending. This is not a procurement contract.
Assistance award details
- Assistance award identifier
- ASST_NON_R00AG061238_075
- FAIN
- R00AG061238
- Recipient
- THE GENERAL HOSPITAL CORPORATION
- Awarding agency
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Funding agency
- Department of Health and Human Services
- Assistance listing (CFDA)
- 93.866
- Total obligated
- $776,879
- Period
- Aug 1, 2021 – Jul 31, 2024
- Fiscal year
- 2021
- Place of performance state
- MA
- Source file
- FY2021_All_Assistance_Full_20261006.zip
Description
SEX DIFFERENCES IN THE PROGRESSION OF ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE: IS MENOPAUSE THE KEY? - PROJECT SUMMARY THE OVERALL GOAL OF THIS PROPOSED RESEARCH IS TO ELUCIDATE THE MECHANISMS THAT MAY CONFER INCREASED VULNERABILITY TO ALZHEIMERâS DISEASE (AD)-RELATED COGNITIVE DECLINE IN FEMALES, USING STATE-OF-THE-ART MULTI-MODAL NEUROIMAGING, IN BOTH MIDDLE AND OLDER-AGED ADULTS. FEMALES ARE OFTEN REPORTED TO EXHIBIT GREATER RATES OF CLINICAL PROGRESSION TO AD DEMENTIA THAN MALES. THE APPLICANTâS PRELIMINARY DATA SUGGEST, HOWEVER, THAT MINIMAL SEX DIFFERENCES EXIST IN AMYLOID BURDEN, IMPLYING OTHER PATHOPHYSIOLOGIC MECHANISMS, SUCH AS TAU, MAY INFLUENCE SUBSEQUENT ELEVATED RISK OF COGNITIVE DECLINE IN OLDER FEMALES. IT IS ALSO CRITICAL TO INVESTIGATE THE EARLY EMERGENCE OF SEX DIFFERENCES IN AD BIOMARKER ACCUMULATION DURING MIDLIFE, WHEN SEX AND HORMONAL FACTORS MAY HAVE A PARTICULAR IMPACT. DURING THE K99 PHASE, THE FIRST AIM WILL IDENTIFY SEX DIFFERENCES IN AD NEUROIMAGING BIOMARKERS OF AMYLOID, TAU AND NEURODEGENERATION IN CLINICALLY-NORMAL OLDER ADULTS. THE SECOND AIM WILL DETERMINE RELATIONSHIPS BETWEEN SEX AND BASELINE AD BIOMARKERS ON LONGITUDINAL RATES OF COGNITIVE DECLINE IN THE SAME SAMPLE. THE PRIMARY HYPOTHESIS, BASED ON PRELIMINARY DATA, IS THAT WOMEN WILL DEMONSTRATE GREATER TAU BURDEN, NEURODEGENERATION AND RATES OF COGNITIVE DECLINE DESPITE SIMILAR LEVELS OF AMYLOID BURDEN, LIKELY DUE TO AN INTERACTION BETWEEN SEX AND APOE GENOTYPE. TO ACCOMPLISH THESE GOALS, THE APPLICANT WILL LEVERAGE EXISTING STRENGTHS IN STATISTICAL MODELING AND COGNITIVE NEUROSCIENCE TO GAIN EXPERTISE IN FOUR CRITICAL AREAS OF TRAINING: (1) MULTIMODAL IMAGING, (2) DATA HARMONIZATION, (3) LONGITUDINAL MODELING, AND (4) SEX BIOLOGY. WITH THE DEVELOPMENT OF THESE SKILLS, THE APPLICANT WILL BE WELL POSITIONED IN THE R00 PHASE TO CONDUCT THE FINAL AIM: TO INVESTIGATE SEX DIFFERENCES IN AD BIOMARKER ACCUMULATION IN MIDDLE-AGED ADULTS. IN ADDITION, THE CANDIDATE WILL FOCUS ON THE INFLUENCE OF HORMO