R01AG070951

Brain Health and Ethnic Disparities in ADRD Risk: The Case of Arab Americans - Project Summary

Brain Health and Ethnic Disparities in ADRD Risk: The Case of Arab Americans

The incidence of Alzheimer's disease and related dementia (ADRD) is higher in Black Americans and Hispanics than in non-Hispanic Whites, but data on Arab Americans have been virtually absent from research on brain and cognitive aging. The unique experiences of this understudied group have the potential to clarify knowledge of ADRD disparities related to ethnicity, immigrant, and social factors.

The proposed project leverages the first prevalence study of ADRD among Arab Americans (AG057510) to examine brain mechanisms underlying links between sociocultural risk/protective factors and ADRD. The purpose of this research is to investigate the links between immigrant/cultural factors, brain health, and clinical outcomes related to ADRD.

The following specific aims will be accomplished by obtaining structural MRI and blood-based AD biomarker data in the Detroit-Aging and Memory Project (D-AMP), which obtains high-quality ADRD phenotypes and genetic data on those aged 65+ from a representative sample of 600 Arab Americans, as well as panel participants (N=298) from the Social Relations Study (SRS), to compare to samples of non-Arab Whites in the same geographic area.

Our specific aims are:

1) Quantify differences in brain aging among Arab Americans and Whites in Metro-Detroit and determine the contribution of brain health to group differences in ADRD.

2) Determine the contribution of immigrant/cultural factors (e.g., national origin, age of migration) to brain aging among Arab Americans.

3) Characterize the influence of social relations on brain and cognitive aging among Arab Americans and Whites.

The proposed study benefits from exceptional circumstances, leveraging a uniquely available sample and data, to characterize, for the first time, neuroimaging and blood-based AD biomarkers among older Arab Americans. This knowledge is critical for the development and evaluation of prevention and intervention strategies, as well as the cultural tailoring of such efforts to ensure efficacy in different sociocultural groups in order to eliminate disparities.

Regents Of The University Of Michigan

TO ENCOURAGE BIOMEDICAL, SOCIAL, AND BEHAVIORAL RESEARCH AND RESEARCH TRAINING DIRECTED TOWARD GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF THE AGING PROCESS AND THE DISEASES, SPECIAL PROBLEMS, AND NEEDS OF PEOPLE AS THEY AGE. THE NATIONAL INSTITUTE ON AGING HAS ESTABLISHED PROGRAMS TO PURSUE THESE GOALS. THE DIVISION OF AGING BIOLOGY EMPHASIZES UNDERSTANDING THE BASIC BIOLOGICAL PROCESSES OF AGING. THE DIVISION OF GERIATRICS AND CLINICAL GERONTOLOGY SUPPORTS RESEARCH TO IMPROVE THE ABILITIES OF HEALTH CARE PRACTITIONERS TO RESPOND TO THE DISEASES AND OTHER CLINICAL PROBLEMS OF OLDER PEOPLE. THE DIVISION OF BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL RESEARCH SUPPORTS RESEARCH THAT WILL LEAD TO GREATER UNDERSTANDING OF THE SOCIAL, CULTURAL, ECONOMIC AND PSYCHOLOGICAL FACTORS THAT AFFECT BOTH THE PROCESS OF GROWING OLD AND THE PLACE OF OLDER PEOPLE IN SOCIETY. THE DIVISION OF NEUROSCIENCE FOSTERS RESEARCH CONCERNED WITH THE AGE-RELATED CHANGES IN THE NERVOUS SYSTEM AS WELL AS THE RELATED SENSORY, PERCEPTUAL, AND COGNITIVE PROCESSES ASSOCIATED WITH AGING AND HAS A SPECIAL EMPHASIS ON ALZHEIMER'S DISEASE. SMALL BUSINESS INNOVATION RESEARCH (SBIR) PROGRAM: TO EXPAND AND IMPROVE THE SBIR PROGRAM, TO INCREASE PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATIONS DERIVED FROM FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, TO INCREASE SMALL BUSINESS PARTICIPATION IN FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, AND TO FOSTER AND ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION OF SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS IN TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION. SMALL BUSINESS TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER (STTR) PROGRAM: TO STIMULATE AND FOSTER SCIENTIFIC AND TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION THROUGH COOPERATIVE RESEARCH DEVELOPMENT CARRIED OUT BETWEEN SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS, TO FOSTER TECHNOLOGY TRANSFER BETWEEN SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND RESEARCH INSTITUTIONS, TO INCREASE PRIVATE SECTOR COMMERCIALIZATION OF INNOVATIONS DERIVED FROM FEDERAL RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT, AND TO FOSTER AND ENCOURAGE PARTICIPATION OF SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY DISADVANTAGED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS AND WOMEN-OWNED SMALL BUSINESS CONCERNS IN TECHNOLOGICAL INNOVATION.

93.866 - Aging Research

National Institute on Aging (NIA) [HHS - NIH]

Ann Arbor, Michigan 481091276 United States

Single Zip Code

Research on Current Topics in Alzheimer's Disease and Its Related Dementias (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) (PAR-19-070)

Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 03/31/26 to 03/31/27 and the total obligations have increased 451% from $915,486 to $5,040,162.