AWARE Awards CVL Labs to Further Alzheimer’s Disease Study
By: Web Services Administrator | May 10, 2023
Two CVL faculty have been awarded grants to further advance research related to Alzheimer’s disease. Dr. Kristen Kennedy and Dr. Chandramallika Basak will be receiving grants of $30,000 each from the AWARE Fund of The Dallas Foundation.
Dr. Basak’s Lifespan Neuroscience & Cognition Lab will be using the grant to purchase a mobile fNIRS (functional Near Infra-Red Spectroscopy) system.
“This grant is important as it will allow me to buy a mobile fNIRS system for my lab to collect neuroimaging data on a group of older adults who otherwise cannot participate in our neuroimaging studies. By increasing research engagement in a more diverse group of older adults in ecologically valid settings, we can ensure the implementation of best practices in aging research,” says Dr. Chandramallika Basak.
Dr. Kennedy’s grant will be put towards a pilot study in her Neuroimaging of Aging & Cognition Lab to use ultra-high field (7T) imaging and spectroscopy to investigate age and biomarker-related differences in neurometabolites, which are metabolites found in the brain as a result of neural activity.
“I am honored that the AWARE group has put their trust in me again to be a good steward of their hard-earned funds. It is these types of funds that allow us to go after high-risk, high-yield projects such as this one, that will not only discover important information about the molecular function of the aging brain but also enable the pursuit of large-scale federally funded projects. This award will help support the training of our incoming postdoctoral fellow, Jessica, as well as support our first venture into ultra-high field neuroimaging, which is an exciting opportunity for the lab!” Dr. Kristen Kennedy.
AWARE is a component fund of The Dallas Foundation, a 501 (c) (3) publicly supported charity. Each year, they conduct grant reviews to carefully select and award research institutions that are at the forefront of medical research in the treatment, prevention, and cure of Alzheimer’s disease.
