Research Projects

When an adult mammal acquires new skills and new knowledge, the degree to which transition will occur from temporary to permanent memories of such events is governed by factors such as emotional weight and importance of the experiences for survival. To execute the necessary structural synaptic reorganisations needed to permanently embed novel...

In the middle of 21st century Europe will become ‘the oldest continent’ in demographical terms. Obviously, the older we get the more susceptible to age related diseases (i.e. Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease) and inevitable physical limitations we become. Many seniors cannot live without daily care, either formal or informal. Today, more...

Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy-body dementias (including Parkinson’s disease) and other neurodegenerative dementias are major causes of disease, reduced patient- and caregiver quality of life, and increasing societal health costs. All have lengthy (decades) pre-dementia- and pre-clinical stages, but patients will have suffered irreversible brain damage...

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is characterized by brain nerve cell death and dementia, but before dementia, leading up to these final and irreversible end-points we first see loss of synapses, which are the contacts between nerve cells allowing us to think, learn and function as independent beings. Coincident with early synaptic loss we also see...

Neurodegenerative diseases are one of the most important contributors to morbidity and mortality in the elderly. In Europe, over 14 million people are currently living with dementia, at a cost of over 400 billion EUR annually. Comorbidities with these conditions are frequent and a major obstacle to optimal diagnosis and management. Recent advances...

PHARMA-COG aims to develop a new integrated model to accelerate the development of drug candidates for MS, PKD and AD. The innovation relies on a 'multidimensional matrix' approach, integrating all available and renewed inputs (biomarkers/animal, human models/physiological and pharmacological challenges, Phase 0/1/1b to reduce the attrition rate...

Background: The projected steep rise in global dementia prevalence will largely occur in low and middle-income countries (LMIC) and vulnerable populations in high-income countries (HIC). Up to 30% of all dementia is attributable to potentially modifiable risk factors. Mobile Health (mHealth) technology allows for scalable and widely implementable...

Alzheimer's disease is a disease in which specific peptides, so-called beta-amyloids, accumulate in the brain, leading to the destruction of neurons and the resulting clinical functional effects, e.g. memory and orientation problems. Discussions are ongoing as to whether or not Alzheimer's disease may be transmissible between individuals and could...

Alzheimer’s disease is on the rise in our ageing population, and new, effective treatments are urgently needed. Currently, the safety and benefits to patients of potential treatments are assessed in strictly-controlled clinical trials. However, clinical trials do not provide information on the health benefits for patients in their daily lives in...

Alzheimer's disease (AD), the main cause of dementia, is one of the major global health challenges of our time. This disabling disorder affects 55 million people worldwide, with costs above $1.3 trillion. With 67 million people at risk for AD dementia (prodromal and preclinical AD) in Europe alone, it is a major unmet public health need, with...

There is an urgent need for novel approaches assessing functional decline in early AD. The main goal of the RADAR-AD project is to develop a digital platform to detect subtle functional deficits in early Alzheimer’s disease (AD) individuals by integrating a meaningful combination of smartphone, wearable and/or home sensor based parameters. The...

Dementia is 60 times less common in people aged below 65 years than in older adults. However, when dementia occurs at a relatively young age it imposes a particularly severe burden on patients and families. RHAPSODY attempts to improve the management of young-onset dementia across Europe. The project starts with an analysis how health and social...