BioALFA | The effect of pro-aging and pro-youthful blood factors in normal ageing and Alzheimer’s disease: a multimodal approach

Summary
The overall aim of the planned research is to test whether pro-aging and pro-youthful blood factors are associated with cognitive performance and neuroimaging outcomes in normal ageing and in individuals at risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and whether this association is modified by lifestyle habits (e.g. exercise or diet) or genetic factors. Ageing is the most important risk factor for AD. However, the exact mechanism that link ageing and AD is still unknown and, up to now, potential therapies for AD by targeting ageing have been poorly explored. Thus, in the present project we aim to provide a better understanding of the link between ageing and AD by measuring in human blood those factors that have been found to be ‘pro-youthful’ (GDF-11) or ‘pro-aging’ (CCL2, CCL11 and CCL19) in experimental animal models, but have not been comprehensively studied in humans. For these purposes, we will first develop novel and highly specific and sensitive assays based on the state-of-the-art Simoa platform. Next, we will measure these factors in the participants of the ALFA (Alzheimer and Families) study, which is currently taking place in the Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Centre (BBRC), the host institution of this project. The ALFA cohort is composed of 2743 cognitively healthy individuals (45 to 75 years old) from which comprehensive clinical, neuropsychological, neuroimaging, genetic and environmental and lifestyle factors data are already available. Measurements will be performed in two steps: a training cohort and a validation cohort. Finally, we will investigate the association of the levels of the pro-aging/pro-youthful blood factors with features known to be related to AD such as clinical and life-style variables, neuroimaging outcomes and signatures and genetic variables. Altogether, the results of this project will clarify whether those blood pro-aging or pro-youthful factors may become potential therapeutic targets in AD.
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More information & hyperlinks
Web resources: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/752310
Start date: 01-01-2018
End date: 14-01-2020
Total budget - Public funding: 158 121,60 Euro - 158 121,00 Euro
Cordis data

Original description

The overall aim of the planned research is to test whether pro-aging and pro-youthful blood factors are associated with cognitive performance and neuroimaging outcomes in normal ageing and in individuals at risk of Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and whether this association is modified by lifestyle habits (e.g. exercise or diet) or genetic factors. Ageing is the most important risk factor for AD. However, the exact mechanism that link ageing and AD is still unknown and, up to now, potential therapies for AD by targeting ageing have been poorly explored. Thus, in the present project we aim to provide a better understanding of the link between ageing and AD by measuring in human blood those factors that have been found to be ‘pro-youthful’ (GDF-11) or ‘pro-aging’ (CCL2, CCL11 and CCL19) in experimental animal models, but have not been comprehensively studied in humans. For these purposes, we will first develop novel and highly specific and sensitive assays based on the state-of-the-art Simoa platform. Next, we will measure these factors in the participants of the ALFA (Alzheimer and Families) study, which is currently taking place in the Barcelonaβeta Brain Research Centre (BBRC), the host institution of this project. The ALFA cohort is composed of 2743 cognitively healthy individuals (45 to 75 years old) from which comprehensive clinical, neuropsychological, neuroimaging, genetic and environmental and lifestyle factors data are already available. Measurements will be performed in two steps: a training cohort and a validation cohort. Finally, we will investigate the association of the levels of the pro-aging/pro-youthful blood factors with features known to be related to AD such as clinical and life-style variables, neuroimaging outcomes and signatures and genetic variables. Altogether, the results of this project will clarify whether those blood pro-aging or pro-youthful factors may become potential therapeutic targets in AD.

Status

CLOSED

Call topic

MSCA-IF-2016

Update Date

28-04-2024
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Horizon 2020
H2020-EU.1. EXCELLENT SCIENCE
H2020-EU.1.3. EXCELLENT SCIENCE - Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
H2020-EU.1.3.2. Nurturing excellence by means of cross-border and cross-sector mobility
H2020-MSCA-IF-2016
MSCA-IF-2016