Abstract
Four decades of the National Institute on Aging's sponsored research into Alzheimer's disease (AD) have resulted in symptomatic and mechanistic therapies, lifestyle interventions, increased understanding of genetic factors and protein misfolding, and descriptions of non-AD neuropathological entities that mimic AD clinical symptoms. This is an overview of contributions from one of the original ten Alzheimer Disease Research Centers (ADRCs), the University of Kentucky ADRC. We celebrate 40 years of helping the field to define early pathogenetic mechanisms underlying transitions from normal cognitive aging to impairment in our elderly community-based cohort, increased appreciation of the heterogeneity and multiple pathologies that characterize late-life dementia, strategies for therapeutic intervention, and novel statistical approaches. We also highlight our educational efforts to train the workforce of the future and our long-standing community outreach and partnerships. Highlights: The University of Kentucky Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (UK-ADRC) is an experienced and collaborative center celebrating its 40th year of National Institute on Aging funding in 2025. Our long-standing community-based cohort of motivated older adult volunteers and strong neuropathology program support the rationale for our overarching theme: “Transitions from Normal to Late-Life Multi-Etiology Dementia.” The UK-ADRC's focus on normal aging and early cognitive transitions has been central to elucidating pathogenic mechanisms underlying transitions from normal cognitive aging to impairment and defining the heterogeneity and multiple pathologies that characterize late-life dementia. UK-ADRC infrastructure and resources support and create new opportunities for innovative and inclusive research, clinical programs across the cognitive continuum, educational and training opportunities, and community and national partnerships.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Article number | e70181 |
| Journal | Alzheimer's and Dementia |
| Volume | 21 |
| Issue number | 5 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - May 2025 |
Bibliographical note
Publisher Copyright:© 2025 The Author(s). Alzheimer's & Dementia published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of Alzheimer's Association.
Funding
We fondly remember the tireless efforts and leadership of Dr. William Markesbery that led to the establishment of the Sanders-Brown Center on Aging (SBCoA) and the UK-ADRC. We also thank all the SBCoA and UK-ADRC personnel for their outstanding collaborative efforts to advance the field of aging and dementia. We thank our colleagues who have served on our internal and external advisory committees for providing their guidance over the years. Finally, we are extremely grateful for the dedication and commitment of our research participants and their care partners, who give of their time and the ultimate gift of brain donation to make scientific progress possible. We gratefully acknowledge funding for the UK-ADRC by the National Institute on Aging since 1985 through grants P50 AG005144, P30 AG028383, and P30 AG072946. The UK‐ADRC supports numerous educational programs and training opportunities. A few examples are listed below. The TRIAD (Translational Research in Alzheimer's and Related Dementias) T32 grant AG078110 continues to provide predoctoral and postdoctoral trainees with cross‐disciplinary training from bench to bedside to produce a new translational workforce that is critically needed to advance effective discoveries and treatments for AD/ADRD. This T32 provides a pathway to our Research Education Component Scholar program that supports early career faculty. With support from the UK Department of Neurology, a geriatric neurology fellowship has been launched in the past 2 years. Here, trainees engage in clinical and research activities involving patient consultation and care for persons with cerebrovascular disease, movement disorders, and dementia. We fondly remember the tireless efforts and leadership of Dr. William Markesbery that led to the establishment of the Sanders‐Brown Center on Aging (SBCoA) and the UK‐ADRC. We also thank all the SBCoA and UK‐ADRC personnel for their outstanding collaborative efforts to advance the field of aging and dementia. We thank our colleagues who have served on our internal and external advisory committees for providing their guidance over the years. Finally, we are extremely grateful for the dedication and commitment of our research participants and their care partners, who give of their time and the ultimate gift of brain donation to make scientific progress possible. We gratefully acknowledge funding for the UK‐ADRC by the National Institute on Aging since 1985 through grants P50 AG005144, P30 AG028383, and P30 AG072946.
| Funders | Funder number |
|---|---|
| Sanders-Brown Center on Aging | |
| UK Department of Neurology | |
| 1Florida Alzheimer's Disease Research Center | |
| National Institute on Aging | P30 AG028383, P50 AG005144, P30 AG072946 |
| National Institute on Aging | |
| National Institute on Aging | P30 AG028383, P50 AG005144, P30 AG072946 |
Keywords
- aging-related tau astrogliopathy
- biofluid
- biomarkers
- clinical trials
- dementia genetic factors
- limbic predominant age-related TDP-43 encephalopathy neuropathologic change
- longitudinal cohort
- multi-etiology dementia
- multi-state cognition
- neuroimaging
- neuropathology
- optimal brain aging
- primary age-related tauopathy
- reserve and resilience
- transitions
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Epidemiology
- Health Policy
- Developmental Neuroscience
- Clinical Neurology
- Geriatrics and Gerontology
- Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience
- Psychiatry and Mental health
