Exploring the Utility of [18F]3F4AP for Demyelination Imaging in Controls, Neurodegeneration and...
Brain InjuriesTraumatic2 moreThe overall objective is to obtain an initial assessment of the value of using [18F]3F4AP for imaging demyelinating diseases such as traumatic brain injury (TBI), neurodegenerative diseases such as mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's Disease (AD): Aim 1) Assess the safety of [18F]3F4AP in healthy volunteers and subjects with traumatic brain injury (TBI) and neurocognitive impaired subjects (AD/MCI). Hypothesis 1: Administration of [18F]3F4AP will result in no changes in vitals or other adverse events. Aim 2) Assess the radiation doses to the main organs in healthy volunteers. Hypothesis 2: the radiation doses to each organ will be comparable in all subjects and within the acceptable limits. Aim 3) Assess the pharmacokinetics of a bolus infusion of [18F]3F4AP in humans including healthy volunteers and patients. Hypothesis 3: the pharmacokinetics of [18F]3F4AP at the whole brain level will be similar in controls, TBI and AD/MCI subjects. The kinetics in demyelinated lesions will be slower than in healthy areas. Aim 4) Correlate MR images with [18F]3F4AP PET images. Hypothesis 4A: all the lesions seen on the MRI will show increased signal (VT or SUV) on the PET images. Hypothesis 4B: some of the lesions on the MRI will show increased signal (VT or SUV) on the PET but not all. Aim 5) Correlate [18F]3F4AP PET signal with neuropsychological testing in people with TBI and AD/MCI. Hypothesis 5A: increased PET signal (VT or SUV) will correlate with impaired Mini Mental State Examination (MMSE).
Metformin in Alzheimer's Dementia Prevention
Mild Cognitive ImpairmentMAP will be a multisite phase II/III 1:1 randomized controlled trial (RCT) of long acting metformin (reduced mass Glucophage XR) vs. matching placebo in 326 men and women with early and late aMCI, without diabetes, not treated with metformin, overweight or obese, aged 55 years to 90 years. The RCT will last 18 months and have 4 visits: baseline, 6-months, 12-months, and 18-months. The RCT will be preceded by a screening phase followed by randomization and a titration period in which drug/placebo will be titrated from 500 mg a day (one tablet) to 2,000 mg a day (4 tablets), in increments of 500 mg (one tablet) every 10 days. Participants will remain in the RCT on the tolerated dose, and included in analyses on an intent to treat basis. We expect the attrition rate to be 10%/year. Neuropsychological battery, clinical interviews, physical exam, and phlebotomy will be conducted at baseline and every 6 months. Brain MRI will be conducted in approximately half of the participants (186) twice, at baseline, and after the last study visit at month 18. We will also conduct brain amyloid Positron Emission Tomography (PET) using 18F-Florbetaben, and tau PET using 18F-MK6240 in half of the participants at baseline and end of the RCT. The primary clinical outcome of the study will be changes in the Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test. The secondary clinical outcome will be changes in the Alzheimer's Disease Cooperative Study Preclinical Alzheimer's Cognitive Composite. Secondary subclinical outcomes will be changes in cortical thickness AD signature areas, changes in white matter hyperintensity volume, changes in brain amyloid burden, changes in brain tau burden, and changes in plasma biomarkers of amyloid, tau, and neurodegeneration. The data coordinating center and Imaging Core is located at John Hopkins University. The PET coordinating center is located at UC-Berkeley. The Clinical Coordinating and Monitoring Center and the central laboratory will be located at Columbia. The Research pharmacy function will be shared by the University of Rochester, which will dispense randomization kits, and the University of Iowa, which will receive bulk metformin and identical matching placebo from EMD Serono.
[18F]PI-2620 Phase 3 Histopathological Study
Alzheimer DiseaseThis study is an open-label, multi-center, non-randomized pivotal Phase 3 study to assess the efficacy and safety of PET imaging with [18F]PI-2620 for detection of tau deposition in subjects with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and controls during lifetime when compared to histopathology obtained after death and completion of brain autopsy.
First-in-Human Evaluation of an Astrocytic Glutamate Transporter (EAAT2) PET Tracer in Dementia...
Alzheimer DiseaseFrontotemporal Dementia1 moreThis is a first in human study that will assess the safety and diagnostic performance of [18F]RP-115 (fluorine-18 labeled RP115), a positron emission tomography (PET) agent. This agent has the potential to identify the early changes that occur in the brains of patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD).
Disclosing Dementia Risk Based on Plasma Phosphorylated Tau
Alzheimer DiseaseMild Cognitive ImpairmentNovel blood-based biomarkers of Alzheimer's disease (AD), such as plasma levels of tau phosphorylated at threonine 181 (p-tau181), have shown great promise in detecting early AD pathology. While current studies point to this biomarker as having great clinical utility, one necessary step before clinical implementation is developing safe and effective methods for disclosure of results. Past risk disclosure studies have shown that disclosing risk for AD based on genetics or amyloid status is safe, but these studies have largely focused on cognitively unimpaired individuals. This study seeks to develop comprehensible educational materials to aid risk disclosure and examine the effect of risk disclosure based on plasma p-tau181 results in a group of participants with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) at imminent risk of converting to dementia. First, educational materials will be developed in collaboration with health communication experts and then refined in focus groups made up of individuals with MCI. Educational materials will be analyzed on several key reading and comprehensibility metrics and will include personalized risk estimate based on a well-accepted risk algorithm (Cullen, et al., 2021). Next, these educational materials will be utilized to disclose risk in a randomized controlled trial with an active control arm receiving disclosure based on age, sex, and cognitive status (based on Mini-Mental State Examination), meant to mimic common methods of clinical diagnostic and prognostic decision making, and an intervention arm receiving disclosure based on the above factors plus plasma p-tau181 results. Outcomes will include measures of comprehension and psychological well-being (anxiety, depression, hopelessness, and distress) and will be assessed immediately after risk disclosure and again at six-month follow-up. It is hypothesized that risk disclosure based on plasma p-tau181 is not more psychologically harmful or less comprehensible than disclosure based on demographic factors and MMSE. This pilot study will provide a necessary step towards moving plasma p-tau biomarkers towards safe clinical implementation and will develop educational materials that can be utilized in future studies and clinical practice.
Combating Alzheimer's Through Sleep and Exercise
Alzheimer DiseaseDementiaThe purpose of this research is to see how sleep and exercise affects dementia risk over time.
Gamma Light and Sound Stimulation to Prevent Dementia in Cognitively Normal People at Risk for Alzheimer's...
Alzheimer DiseaseFamily MembersAlzheimer's disease (AD) is characterized by significant memory loss, toxic protein deposits (amyloid and tau) in the brain, and changes in the gamma frequency band on EEG. Gamma waves are important for memory, and in patients with AD, there are fewer gamma waves in the brain. The Tsai lab found that boosting gamma waves in AD mouse models using light and sound stimulation at 40Hz not only reduced amyloid and tau in the brain, but also improved memory. A light and sound device was developed for humans that stimulates the brain at 40Hz that can be used safely at home. The goal of this study is to see if using this device can prevent dementia in people who are at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease.
Multi-Center Development of a Novel Diagnostic Test for Alzheimer's Disease
Alzheimer DiseaseMild Cognitive ImpairmentIn this multi-center study, the investigators plan to develop a simple blood-based test for early detection of Alzheimer's disease (AD). The test is based on a single injection of Pramlintide, an amylin analogue and FDA-approved drug currently used for treatment of diabetes. The investigative team has provided evidence in humans with full-blown AD and AD-relevant mouse models that a single injection of Pramlintide transiently renders the blood brain barrier (BBB) more permeable to Amyloidbeta (Aß) peptides, allowing their efflux from the brain compartment into the blood. This Aß efflux causes a corresponding transient elevation of blood levels of Aß, the magnitude of which the applicants believe is proportional to the brain amyloid load as determined by AV-45 PET. The measured difference in the level of plasma Aß taken just before and a short time after injection should reveal the magnitude of the transient increase in blood Aß levels. Supportive preliminary data comes from later stage (full-blown) AD patients with more in-depth background studies in Tg2576 and 5X Familial Alzheimer's Disease (FAD) mouse models. If successful for use as an early AD (i.e., at the Mild Cognitive Impairment [MCI] stage) biomarker, this could be a game-changer for both early AD diagnostics and clinical trials aimed at identifying and testing the efficacy of drugs useful for treatment of AD at early stages. If Pramlintide is effective in releasing mobile pools of Aß from the brain into the blood, this could also have some therapeutic potential, with the goal of reducing brain amyloid load. Three groups of particpants will be studied: 1) amnestic MCI with or without positive AD imaging pathology, 2) probable AD with positive imaging AD pathology, and 3) controls who have normal cognition and do not have memory complaints.
UAB Alzheimer's Disease Center Core Cohort - Imaging Substudy
Alzheimer DiseaseThe primary objective of this study is to measure the concentration and the regional brain distribution of pathologic amyloid deposition using the PET tracer [C-11]PiB in participants in the UAB Alzheimer's Disease Center cohort. Assessment of interactions between race and vascular risk factors, brain amyloid levels measured with [C-11]PiB-PET, and cognitive status will be the primary outcome of this imaging study.
Tau PET Imaging in Atypical Dementias
Primary Progressive Aphasia With Suspected Alzheimer's DiseaseThe goal of this study is to demonstrate the feasibility of mapping tau pathology in subjects with Primary Progressive Aphasia, using PET protocol with F-AV-1451 (trade name AV-1451) and to systematically document the extent and location of tau pathology in PPA patients in vivo using the same techniques.