MRC National Survey of Health and Development Neuroimaging sub-study
Research type
Research Study
Full title
MRC National Survey of Health and Development Neuroimaging sub-study
IRAS ID
147460
Contact name
Jonathan Schott
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
UCL
Research summary
We need better ways to predict who will get Alzheimer's disease (AD) the commonest cause of dementia and when, if we are to offer very early treatments with the aim of preventing or delaying the onset of symptoms.
We aim to recruit 500 members of the NSHD for the Neuroimaging sub-study. Study members will be invited for two research visits, two years apart. They will have detailed memory testing, a neurological examination and brain scanning(PET/MRI) to assess brain shrinkage, strokes, brain connections, and the presence of Alzheimer-related proteins. We will combine genetic and life course data to assess risks for developing cognitive impairment, and look for new ways of diagnosing AD from blood and urine.
This sub-study will assess what predisposes some individuals to develop brain amyloid pathology; and why this leads to progressive neurodegeneration in some, yet seemingly not all. Combining the unique life course data of a birth cohort at this critical age for accumulation of brain amyloid with biomarkers of progression, whole genome genotyping and with prospective follow-up, allows a unique opportunity to look both “back” and “forward” to assess factors associated with the emergence of AD pathology, and multifactorial cognitive decline. We will address not just if an individual will develop AD, but when, paving the way for a stratified approach to therapeutics combining robust biomarkers of risk, proximity and outcome.
REC name
London - Queen Square Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/1173
Date of REC Opinion
17 Sep 2014
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion