R01AG076668

Optimizing a Closed-Loop Digital Meditation Intervention for Remediating Cognitive Decline and Reducing Stress in Older Adults - Abstract

Deficits in cognitive control are at the core of much cognitive decline experienced by many older adults, often leading to functional decline and eventually dementia. The rapidly growing segment of the population facing such cognitive decline has the potential to negatively impact society broadly, and it has been estimated that maintaining or improving cognition in older adults (OA) could potentially prevent or delay the onset of an estimated 10 million new cases of Alzheimer's disease and other dementias. Given the lack of success in discovering effective pharmacological or preventative therapies to prevent dementias, developing targeted interventions to remediate cognitive deficits is vital.

To this end, we developed a novel closed-loop, digital meditation intervention (MEDITRAIN) that was designed to improve regulation of focused attention in healthy OA. In a mechanistic RCT, we recently showed that MEDITRAIN led to broad improvements in cognitive control, with the greatest gains seen in a subgroup of OA with cognitive deficits (i.e., MCI-like). In addition, this intervention led to reduced stress reactivity and improvements in cellular markers of aging.

A goal of this proposal will be to extend the scope of our intervention by conducting a mobile RCT (MRCT) in a large sample, recruited nationally, who will complete the study entirely on mobile devices, providing the statistical power to perform planned moderator and subgroup analyses to understand the sources of variability in treatment response.

Another important question that emerged from our initial RCT of MEDITRAIN in OA was: what is the minimal and/or optimal dose of the intervention required to achieve the benefits we observed? Thus, this proposed research will tackle two specific aims: first, we will conduct in a large, MRCT of MEDITRAIN in OA at varying doses of treatment to determine the minimum effective dose required for cognitive improvement and stress reduction. Second, we will examine the moderating effect of cognitive decline on treatment effects. We will also include an exploratory aim to examine the impact of potential genetic (Alzheimer's polygenic hazard scores), physiological (cardiovascular risk), and social (race/ethnicity) moderators on the treatment effects.

To accomplish these aims, we will conduct a large-scale MRCT of MEDITRAIN deployed on mobile devices in a diverse, nationwide sample of OA (N = 3240), who will complete the study entirely on mobile devices. This large, national cohort will provide the sample size necessary to examine individual and subgroup differences in treatment response across a diverse swath of the general population. All participants will complete baseline, immediate follow-up, and 6-month follow-up assessments of cognitive and functional outcomes.

We anticipate that this unique methodological approach and experimental design will significantly advance the development of treatment programs directed at the broad range of cognitive abilities and clinical populations that suffer from deficient regulation of attentional control.

San Francisco Regents Of The University Of California

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]

San Francisco, California 94143 United States

Single Zip Code

Early Stage Clinical Trials for the Spectrum of Alzheimers Disease and Age-related Cognitive Decline (R01 Clinical Trial Optional) (PAR-18-877)

Amendment Since initial award the End Date has been extended from 05/31/27 to 05/31/28 and the total obligations have increased 220% from $1,362,781 to $4,364,410.