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PRIMATE RESEARCH COMBINES WITH EYE-TRACKING TECHNOLOGY TO DETECT COGNITIVE IMPAIRMENT
24 February 2007 - Emory University
| Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center of Emory University have expanded a nonhuman primate-based study to human patients with the intention of identifying human patients with mild cognitive impairment who will progress to the more devastating Alzheimer's disease. MCI is a subtle memory impairment without dementia. The goal of such identification is to develop early interventional therapy to stop or slow the progression of MCI to AD. |
Researchers at the Yerkes National Primate Research Center of Emory University have expanded a nonhuman primate-based study to human patients with the intention of identifying human patients with mild cognitive impairment who will progress to the more devastating Alzheimer's disease. MCI is a subtle memory impairment without dementia. The goal of such identification is to develop early interventional therapy to stop or slow the progression of MCI to AD. Stuart Zola, PhD, director of the Yerkes Research Center, and his team of researchers are adapting behavioral memory tasks developed for use with NHPs and combining them with noninvasive, infrared, eye-tracking technology to detect impaired memory in humans before major damage occurs in the brain. The current human studies are based on results from NHP-based research in which researchers identified the important role the hippocampus plays in memory function. Damage to the hippocampus has been implicated in the early memory problems of MCI patients. Dr. Zola and his colleagues presented data about their work at the upcoming International Alzheimer's Association meeting during a poster session July 18. Their research is funded by the NIH.
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About: Emory University
Emory University is home to nine major academic divisions, numerous centres for advanced study, and a host of prestigious affiliated institutions. In addition to Emory College, the University encompasses a graduate school of arts and sciences; professional schools of medicine, theology, law, nursing, public health, and business; and Oxford College, a two-year undergraduate division on the original campus of Emory in Oxford, Ga. Emory was founded at Oxford by the Methodist Church in 1836. Led by President James W. Wagner, an award-winning teacher and scholar, the University has 11,300 students and 2,500 faculty members who represent all regions of the United States and more than 100 foreign nations. Emory University is known for its demanding academics, outstanding undergraduate college of arts and sciences, highly ranked professional schools and state-of-the-art research facilities. For more than a decade Emory has been named one of the country's top 25 national universities by U.S. News & World Report. In addition to its nine schools, the university encompasses The Carter Center, Yerkes National Primate Research Center and Emory Healthcare, a comprehensive metropolitan health care system. |
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