A center dedicated to improving research and care for Alzheimer's disease and related dementias at Oregon Health & Science University has earned $22.8 million in continued federal funding over the next five years.
The Oregon Alzheimer's Disease Research Center at OHSU is one of 35 centers of excellence designated and funded by the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health. The OHSU center received its initial award in 1990, marking 35 years of receiving competitive renewals.
The funding will make a big difference in Oregon, said Lisa Silbert, M.D., the center's co-director and professor of neurology in the OHSU School of Medicine.
"It's an important resource not just here at OHSU but for the entire state of Oregon and the surrounding region," Silbert said. "This award will provide support to reach all individuals in the region who are interested in clinical trials, for new scientific investigators entering the field, and to better understand the cause of early cognitive decline and measures to promote continued cognitive health."
Silbert and Miranda Lim, M.D., Ph.D., professor of neurology in the OHSU School of Medicine, became the center's co-directors in 2023, following the three-decade tenure of founding director Jeffrey Kaye, M.D., who continues at OHSU in an adjunct research capacity as the Layton Endowed Professor of Neurology. Kevin Duff, Ph.D., professor of neurology in the OHSU School of Medicine, will transition into the role of co-director this fall. Lim will remain at the center as associate director.
Silbert noted that the Oregon center's use of technology and neuroimaging stands out nationally among the 35 centers nationwide.
During his tenure, Kaye initiated groundbreaking studies involving "life lab" technology that can detect subtle signals related to health within a participant's home. One of these signals is a digital signature of sleep, which has shown a critical relationship to Alzheimer's pathology and was pioneered by Lim. Silbert has leveraged the rich data from participants in her innovative neuroimaging studies conducted at OHSU Advanced Imaging Research Center.
Duff noted that this kind of digital technology has the potential to extend the center's reach into rural areas across Oregon and the region, enabling the study of cognitive change among people historically underrepresented in aging-related research.
The Oregon Alzheimer's Disease Research Center has eight cores that provide centralized expertise and resources to researchers and health care professionals.
"Health care professionals from all over Oregon consult with us for patient care through the infrastructure that our Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement Core has established," said Allison Lindauer, Ph.D., NP, who is co-associate director of the center and co-leads the outreach core.
As the overall population grows older, Silbert said the renewed infusion of federal funding positions the Oregon center to build on scientific advancements in Alzheimer's and related dementias, particularly for people aged 80 and older, a historical focus of the center. In addition, Alzheimer's can now be diagnosed much earlier in its progression, which opens new avenues to treat or prevent cognitive decline in aging.
"We see a real opportunity for us to make significant progress in improving cognitive health with age," Silbert said. "The funding means we can continue to study the mechanisms of brain disease, which ultimately leads to novel therapies to prevent cognitive decline."
The center is funded with the support of the National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health, P30AG066518. The research is solely the responsibility of the center and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH.
