Drs. Kennedy & Rodrigue Receive $3.7 Million NIH Grant to Study Multiscale Brain Aging

The award will allow the researchers to expand their study of brain aging and risk for Alzheimer’s disease.

The National Institute on Aging has awarded Kristen Kennedy and Karen Rodrigue at the Center for Vital Longevity more than 3.7 million dollars to continue and expand their longitudinal brain aging study. This competitive renewal grant will extend their Dallas Area Longitudinal Lifespan Aging Study (D.A.L.L.A.S.) to include a 4^th and 5^th wave of data collection examining brain structure, function and cognitive aging over a span of ~17 years.

In addition to extending the project, the award allows the researchers to expand the study in new scientific directions. First, the study will add ultra-high field (UHF) neuroimaging to the project by scanning on a 7 Tesla MRI scanner, which has more than double the resolution and imaging capacity of traditional MRI scanners (i.e., at 3 Tesla). At UHF strength the researchers can now include three new imaging techniques: Myelin imaging (Macromolecular Proton Fraction Mapping) will allow for the precise measurement of the health of the white matter connections across the brain; Laminar cortical thickness measurement will allow for the fine-grained assessment of the layers that make up the cerebral cortex and how they age differentially; Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy will allow for the measurement of neurochemical molecular and cellular brain signatures with aging, such as brain energetics, neurotransmitter function, oxidation, and antioxidant levels in the brain. The second direction of expansion will allow the researchers to collect recently developed blood biomarkers of brain health, including neuron and glial cell structural integrity.

“We are very excited for the opportunity to expand our research on cognitive and brain aging to begin to link brain changes across the micro-, meso-, and macro-scale levels to advance our understanding of brain aging and risk for Alzheimer’s Disease.” Dr. Kristen Kennedy

Research participants will return to the lab again every 4 years for repeat neuropsychological assessment and brain scans to assess how each individual ages over time. The D.A.L.L.A.S. cohort includes individuals from the local community ranging in age from 20 to 98 years of age.