Amnesia Causes and Treatments

Title: Targeted Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation to Improve Hippocampal-dependent Declarative Memory Abilities

Stage: Recruiting

Contact:  David E. Warren, PhD

University of Nebraska Medical Center

Omaha, NE

The investigators propose a pilot study of the potential for non-invasive transcranial magnetic stimulation (TMS) to improve memory in healthy adults (young and old) and to treat memory deficits in older adults with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI). aMCI is a condition that frequently precedes Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and a key symptom of aMCI is clinically significant memory loss (i.e., rapid forgetting) greater than expected for age. The investigators will test whether a form of non-invasive brain stimulation, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), can improve memory abilities in healthy young adults, healthy older adults, and older adults with aMCI by retuning memory-related brain networks.

Title: Home-based Brain Stimulation for Memory (MemStim-home)

Stage: Recruiting

Principal Investigator:  Alvaro Pascual-Leone, Dr.

Hinda and Arthur Marcus Institute for Aging Research

Boston, MA

This is a feasibility study, which will include older adult participants (Ps) with memory deficits, together with willing and able administrators (As), to administer tACS to the participants. This study will include 20 older Ps and 20 As to assess the feasibility of deploying home-based tACS in larger clinical trials and prepare for the development and implementation of such trials. The proposed project will systematically examine the feasibility of remote, caregiver-led tACS for older adults vulnerable to memory decline. This study will provide data to support the safety and effectiveness of home-based tACS in this population. It will lead to future research to increase access to tACS as a part of memory decline prevention and treatment for older adults who have more difficulty reaching a clinic for treatment due to disability or who live more remotely.

Title: Dietary Modulation of Neuroinflammation in Age-Related Memory Disorders

Stage: Recruiting

Contact:  Richard Sloan, PhD

Columbia University Medical Center

New York, NY

Within 25 years, the US population aged 65 and over will double in size to 80 million, bringing with it an epidemic of aging-related cognitive decline, from normal cognitive aging to neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer’s Disease. These conditions impair quality of life and functional status, impose an enormous burden on individuals, their families, the healthcare system, and require elucidation of mechanisms and development of new treatments to prevent or at least slow their progression. The use of plant-based food and drink for health purposes has a long and well-documented history. Cocoa beans contain a substance that has multiple beneficial health effects. In this study, the investigators will test this substance’s impact on brain structures and cognitive outcomes in a 12-week randomized controlled trial of 146 healthy participants, age 50-69, who will receive this cocoa derivative or a placebo. The investigators also will examine the role of inflammation in this relationship. Such a trial has the potential for significant clinical impact.