A leading neuroscientist at Florida Atlantic University’s Schmidt College of Medicine has received a $3 million, three-year grant from The Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. Foundation to expand the scope and reach of the Dementia Prevention Initiative (DPI).
Launched in 2017 with a $1 million grant from The Harry T. Mangurian, Jr. Foundation, FAU’s DPI has received widespread interest and is now a large longitudinal study of brain aging and dementia. This new grant will enable FAU to continue research and follow patients for an additional three years, to share data with other investigators, to provide training, and to distribute information publicly.
Developed by James E. Galvin, M.D., M.P.H., principal investigator and director of FAU’s Comprehensive Center for Brain Health in the Schmidt College of Medicine, the DPI uses the latest advances in genetics, biology and the molecular bases of disease and incorporates personalized and tailor-made evaluation and prevention plans to reduce risk.
In this program, Galvin and his team are examining novel biomarkers and peripheral predictors of disease such as physical performance, retinal imaging using optical coherence tomography, and gait analyses. They also are working with companies to develop novel blood tests to improve diagnosis and prediction.
“If we can identify changes in physical activity and gait, examine retinal and visual tests as well as blood-based markers, this information may provide insight into those individuals at-risk for disease who are likely to progress to clinically detectable symptoms,” said Galvin.
