Meir,
Thanks for this! My Mom was diagnosed with Alzheimers about 5 years
ago.... While the research might not help her, it's bound to help others!
On 6/12/07, Meir Weiss <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>
>
>
>
> ________________________________
>
> From: NIA Listmanager [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
> Sent: Tuesday, June 12, 2007 09:44
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: NIA NEWS: Early Results from Alzheimer's Neuroimaging
> Biomarker
> Project Show Promise for Faster Study of Therapies
>
>
>
> NIA NEWS RELEASE
> June 10, 2007
>
> ADNI Database Now Available to Researchers Worldwide
>
> Alzheimer's disease researchers may be able to reduce the time and
> expense associated with clinical trials, according to early results from
> the
> Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a public-private
> research
> partnership organized by the National Institutes of Health. Preliminary
> results
> from ADNI show how it might yield improved methods and uniform standards
> for
> imaging and biomarker analysis, so these techniques can be employed in the
> fight
> against Alzheimer's disease.
>
> These first findings will be presented at the Alzheimer's
> Association
> International Conference on the Prevention of Dementia being held in
> Washington,
> D.C., June 9-12.
>
> The ADNI study observes and tracks changes in normal individuals,
> in
> people with mild cognitive impairment -- a condition which often precedes
> Alzheimer's -- and in people with Alzheimer's. Researchers will use PET
> (positron emission tomography) and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) scans
> to
> track changes in the brain, laboratory analyses of cerebrospinal fluid and
> blood
> to study biomarkers, and clinical interviews to track cognitive
> performance over
> time. ADNI is expected to improve neuroimaging and biomarker measures and
> consequently allow faster and more efficient evaluation of potential
> therapies
> for Alzheimer's.
>
> The $60 million, five-year study began recruiting in early 2006,
> and
> today about 800 older people at 58 sites in the United States and Canada
> participate in the effort. The project is supported primarily by the
> National
> Institute on Aging (NIA), a component of NIH, with private sector support
> from
> pharmaceutical companies, other organizations and the Alzheimer's
> Association
> through the Foundation for NIH. In addition to NIA, other federal partners
> are
> the National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, also part
> of
> NIH, and the Food and Drug Administration.
>
> "New treatment options are urgently needed for the millions of
> people
> who have Alzheimer's and for those at risk as the population ages," says
> Richard
> J. Hodes, M.D., Director of the NIA. "This preliminary report on aspects
> of ADNI
> is quite encouraging."
>
> ADNI principal investigator Michael Weiner, M.D., of the Department
> of
> Veterans Affairs Medical Center, University of California, San Francisco,
> is
> scheduled to give a progress report and describe the new ADNI database
> during
> the conference. Nine other ADNI researchers will also give reports on
> early
> results and preliminary findings from various studies including:
>
> * Predicting Alzheimer's -- A University of California, San
> Diego,
> study found that analyses of MRI and PET images could detect early changes
> in
> cerebral cortex thickness in brains of people with mild cognitive
> impairment
> over a six month period. Further study, the researchers said, would be
> needed to
> see if the changes, with other brain measures, could predict conversion
> from
> mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer's.
>
> * Validating PET scans -- A study reported by scientists at
> the
> Banner Alzheimer's Institute, Phoenix, Ariz., and colleagues compared
> changes
> over time in PET scans of glucose metabolism in people with normal
> cognition,
> mild cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's. The study found that scans
> correlated
> with symptoms of each condition and that images from different clinical
> sites
> were comparable (or consistent). This study suggests the validity of PET
> scans
> for use in future clinical trials.
>
> * MRI Reliability -- A Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minn., study
> found
> that a standard anatomical model of a brain can be used successfully to
> monitor
> performance of MRI scanners at many different clinical sites. This will
> ensure
> accuracy of the MRI images produced from ADNI volunteers using 80 MRI
> scanners
> from scores of sites over five years.
>
> * Biomarker Analysis -- University of Pennsylvania,
> Philadelphia,
> scientists and colleagues compared analyses of cerebrospinal fluid samples
> among
> seven laboratories. The study evaluated differences within and among the
> labs'
> performance. This study will ensure that methods for measuring biomarkers
> are
> accurate and comparable across laboratories.
>
> An important achievement of ADNI is the creation of a publicly
> accessible database available to qualified researchers worldwide. The
> database
> contains thousands of MRI and PET scan brain images and clinical data and
> will
> include biomarker data obtained through blood and cerebrospinal fluid
> analyses.
> ADNI includes samples and brain scans from 200 people with Alzheimer's,
> 400
> people with mild cognitive impairment and 200 healthy people. All
> volunteers are
> between ages 55 and 90. Confidentiality of the participants is rigorously
> protected.
>
> "The database gives ADNI researchers easy access to a huge body of
> data.
> But its added value is its design as an international research resource,
> available worldwide to other researchers interested in neurodegenerative
> disease," says Susan Molchan, M.D., NIA's program director for ADNI.
>
> To date, more than 200 researchers have signed up for database
> access.
> Investigators may apply for access to ADNI data through the database Web
> site,
> www.loni.ucla.edu/ADNI. In addition, qualified scientists may also ask for
> access to the cerebrospinal fluid and blood samples. An application form
> is
> available under the "Scientist Home Page" link at www.adni-info.org/.
>
> Partnership with private-sector funders is managed through the
> not-for-profit Foundation for the National Institutes of Health,
> established by
> the U.S. Congress to support NIH's mission by facilitating private-sector
> organizations' support of and involvement with NIH programs. Corporate and
> non-profit participants are: Pfizer Inc; Wyeth Research; Bristol-Myers
> Squibb;
> Eli Lilly and Company; GlaxoSmithKline; Merck & Co., Inc.; AstraZeneca AB;
> Novartis Pharmaceuticals Corporation; Eisai Global Clinical Development;
> the
> Alzheimer's Association; Elan Corporation, plc; Innogenetics; GE
> Healthcare; and
> the Institute for the Study of Aging. More information on the Foundation
> for NIH
> is available at: www.fnih.org <http://www.fnih.org/> .
>
> NIA leads the federal effort supporting and conducting research on
> aging
> and the medical, social and behavioral issues of older people, including
> Alzheimer's disease and age-related cognitive decline. For information on
> dementia and aging, please visit NIA's Alzheimer's Disease Education and
> Referral Center at www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers, or call 1-800-438-4380. For
> more
> general information on research and aging, go to www.nia.nih.gov
> <http://www.nia.nih.gov/> .
>
> NIH -- the nation's medical research agency -- includes 27
> institutes
> and centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human
> Services. It is the primary federal agency for conducting and supporting
> basic,
> clinical and translational medical research, and it investigates the
> causes,
> treatments and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more
> information
> about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov <http://www.nih.gov/> .
>
> The Alzheimer's Association is the first and largest voluntary
> health
> organization for Alzheimer's disease. The association provides information
> and
> care consultation; offers services for families; funds research; and is a
> leader
> in public policy regarding the disease. For more information, visit
> www.alz.org
> <http://www.alz.org/> .
>
> # # # #
>
>
>
> If you have any questions or problems, please email
> [log in to unmask]
>
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--
Kendall
An unreasonable man (but my wife says that's redundant!)
The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one
persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore, all progress
depends on the unreasonable man.
-George Bernard Shaw 1856-1950
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