Active clinical trials for "Pick Disease of the Brain"

The overall goal of this imaging trial is to evaluate [18F]PI-2620, a tau targeted positron emission computed tomography radioligand, in individuals with tauopathies and healthy volunteers (HV).

The study is designed to assess the demographic, clinical and imaging associations with the presence of microbleeds in atypical Alzheimer's disease. The primary hypothesis is that cognitive and functional performance will be poorer in atypical Alzheimer's subjects with microbleeds compared to those without microbleeds.

This study is being done to learn more about normal thinking and behavior, mild thinking and behavior problems, Frontotemporal Dementia and other forms of dementia in families in which one or more relatives have a mutation associated with Frontotemporal Dementia.

This is a multi-center, observational, feasibility study, to evaluate long term passive data collection, data quality, and user experience of HealthMode Agitation (Apps) to collect motion, location, physiological, and audio data; and eCOA and EMA responses with mobile devices (iPhone, Apple Watch). The purpose of this study is to evaluate and improve HealthMode Apps data collection and usability in subjects experiencing agitation in the context of dementia.

Analysis of gaze patterns during social cognition tasks and standardised exploration of a specific artwork, between elderly subjects without cognitive disorders and subjects with neurodegenerative diseases such as Fronto-Temporal Dementia, Alzheimer's Dementia or Parkinson's Disease

Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD) are two of the most common types of age-related neurodegenerative disorders. Identifying at-risk patients and gauging disease progression in a non-invasive manner would be invaluable. Early and correct diagnosis is crucial for coordinating supportive care, patient expectations, caregiver arrangements and family planning. In addition, as treatments become available, beginning therapy early in the disease before symptoms become severe will be important. Multimodal ocular imaging (MOI) includes an ophthalmic (eye) exam and eye photographs to evaluate different layers of the retina, which is the light sensing layer of the eye. Newer technologies make it possible to visualize the disease process occurring in AD and FTD by using MOI to look at the retina, since the retina is fundamentally an outward extension of the brain itself. This study will attempt to correlate signs of disease in the retina, as determined by MOI, with plaque buildup in the brain as seen by imaging. This will demonstrate the sensitivity and specificity of MOI for diagnosing AD and FTD in a noninvasive manner.

Establishment of individualized human cellular disease models based on induced pluripotent stem cells that reflect the broad heterogeneous phenotypic spectrum of Niemann Pick disease

Niemann-Pick Disease, Type C (NPC) is a rare neurodegenerative disorder with a wide clinical spectrum and variable age of onset. Classically, children with NPC demonstrate neurological dysfunction with cerebellar ataxia (an inability to coordinate balance, gait, extremity and eye movements), dysarthria (difficulty speaking), seizures, vertical gaze palsy (ability to move eyes in the same direction) motor impairment, dysphagia (trouble swallowing), psychotic episodes, and progressive dementia. There is no curative treatment for NPC and it is a lethal disorder. The purpose of this protocol is to obtain both baseline and rate of progression data on a clinical and biochemical markers that may later be used as outcome measures in a clinical trial. Specifically, this study will examine and characterize the longitudinal progression of neurocognitive symptoms of NPC with the goal of identifying early markers of disease progression that may be utilized in later trials to evaluate treatment efficacy.

Objectives. The proposed clinical study has two goals: First, to assess the efficacy of a central nervous system stimulant and an atypical antipsychotic in treating the behavioral symptoms of FTD and second, to further characterize the biological markers, including genetic, imaging, and CSF proteins, of FTD in relation to our existing group of Alzheimer's patients. Rationale. Frontotemporal dementia (FTD) is increasingly recognized as an important neuropsychiatric disorder. Symptoms of FTD include disinhibition, impulsivity, apathy, affective lability, and language dysfunction. The clinical syndrome is associated with frontal and/or anterior temporal atrophy on imaging and autopsy. Levels of the CSF proteins tau and (Beta)-amyloid 1-42, shown to have diagnostic utility in patients with Alzheimer's Disease (AD), have also been found to be abnormal in FTD. FTD is less associated with APOE genotype than AD, however some familial cases of FTD are associated with specific mutations in the gene encoding the tau protein. Currently, no treatments have been proven to be effective for altering the course or clinical symptoms of FTD. Design. Study subjects will include 50 male and female patients with mild-moderate frontotemporal dementia recruited from participants in NINDS protocol 02-N-0001. In a double-blinded crossover 11-week study without a placebo control, patients will be treated with a stimulant (dextroamphetamine) and an atypical antipsychotic (quetiapine). The primary outcome measures will be the Neuropsychiatric Inventory and the Clinical Global Impression of Change. Cerebrospinal fluid, cognitive and genetic measures, brain MRIs, and side effects scales will also be collected.

We are collecting blood samples, clinical and family information from ALS (amyotrophic lateral sclerosis) patients and their families to identify causes of ALS and ALS/dementia.