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The Center for Brain/Mind Medicine

Research & Clinical Trials

There are a number of options for current research participation.  Below we highlight a few programs.

Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment

The Center for Alzheimer Research and Treatment (CART), under the direction of Dr. Reisa Sperling, is evaluating promising new treatments for Alzheimer’s disease through several clinical trials.  The Center is also studying ways to enable earlier diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease by employing more sensitive clinical evaluations, biological markers, and neuroimaging techniques.

Learn More

Brain Health Research Program

The goal of the Brain Health Research Program (BHRP) is to improve overall brain health for those with and at risk for cognitive impairment.  The BHRP includes various research efforts with the following goals:

  • To better understand healthy, cognitive aging
  • To study and develop programs to facilitate brain-healthy behaviors within medical care for patients at risk for and with cognitive disorders
  • To treat, support, and educate patients who have experienced cognitive changes
  • To produce and disseminate knowledge of evidence-based brain-health-promoting programs
LEARN MORE

Neuropsychiatry of Aging Research Group

This research group, led by Dr. Nancy Donovan, investigates the neurology of emotional, cognitive, and social function in healthy older adults and those affected by Alzheimer’s disease.  We work with the Harvard Aging Brain Study and other research partners.  These studies investigate traditional neuropsychiatric symptoms such as anxiety and depression as well as changes in social function.  By understanding the biological underpinnings of these symptoms, we seek to enhance the diagnosis and treatment options for Alzheimer’s disease and other late-life conditions.  Recently, our program also piloted interventions to promote socioemotional well-being through music therapy and intergenerational friendly visits with undergraduate students.

Participate in Research

MADRC
Laboratory of Healthy Cognitive Aging

Research Publications

Latest from the Center for Brain/Mind Medicine

  • Dampening of Microglial Activation With Nasal Foralumab Administration in Moderate Alzheimer's Disease Dementia
    May 13, 2025 by Tarun Singhal
    A 78-year-old man with moderate Alzheimer disease (AD) dementia was treated with nasal-foralumab, a fully human anti-CD3 monoclonal antibody, as part of a Food and Drug Administration expanded-access-program, based on previously demonstrated efficacy of anti-CD3 antibody in animal models. 18F-PBR06-PET, utilizing a second-generation 18-kDa-translocator-protein ligand targeting microglia, showed diffuse reduction of radiotracer uptake throughout the […]
  • Antiamyloid Monoclonal Antibodies in Alzheimer's Disease, Part 1: Patient Selection
    May 5, 2025 by James R Bateman
    The availability of monoclonal antibodies directed against amyloid beta, for use as disease-modifying therapies for Alzheimer's disease (AD), represented a major shift in the field of AD research and treatment. U.S. Food and Drug Administration approvals for the monoclonal antibody-based medications lecanemab and, more recently, donanemab provide clinicians with two antiamyloid therapy (AAT) options for […]
  • Akinetic Mutism Following Bilateral Infarcts Associated with a Mitral Valve Papillary Fibroelastoma
    April 14, 2025 by Stanley Lyndon
    Akinetic mutism is a rare but important clinical syndrome characterised by a profound decrease in goal-directed behaviour and speech output, yet with preservation of consciousness. This report describes the case of a 58-year-old male with a background of hypertension, alcohol use disorder, smoking, and MTHFR C677T homozygosity who experienced two ischaemic strokes within weeks of […]
  • Measuring time saved in Alzheimer's disease: What is a meaningful slowing of progression?
    April 14, 2025 by Krista Lanctot
    INTRODUCTION: Minimal clinically important differences (MCIDs) for Alzheimer's disease (AD) have previously been estimated using clinician-based anchors. However, MCIDs have been criticized for not reflecting the preferences of people living with AD (PLWAD). Furthermore, interpretations of clinical trial results have been criticized for conflating within-person meaningfulness thresholds and between-group differences. Here, we simulate scenarios of […]
  • Donanemab: Appropriate use recommendations
    March 28, 2025 by G D Rabinovici
    Donanemab (Kisunla®), an IgG1 monoclonal antibody targeting N-terminal pyroglutamate-modified forms of amyloid-β, is approved in the United States for treatment of early symptomatic Alzheimer's disease (AD). Appropriate Use Recommendations (AUR) were developed to guide the implementation of donanemab in real-world practice, prioritizing safety considerations and opportunity for effectiveness. The AUR were developed by the AD […]
  • Effects of focal brain damage on political behaviour across different political ideologies
    March 21, 2025 by Shan H Siddiqi
    Intense political behavior is associated with brain regions involved in emotional and cognitive processing. However, it remains unclear if this neuroanatomy is causal, compensatory, or otherwise correlated. We employed lesion network mapping in a cross-sectional study of 124 male military Veterans with penetrating head trauma. 40-45 years after the injury, participants reported current political behavior […]
  • Associations between neuropsychiatric symptoms and pathology in clinicopathologically defined Alzheimer's disease, Alzheimer's disease with Lewy bodies, and dementia with Lewy bodies
    March 14, 2025 by Cecilia Tremblay
    BackgroundNeuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are frequent in Alzheimer's disease (AD) dementia, but a higher NPS burden is found in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Lewy body (LB) pathology frequently co-occurs with AD pathology and may not meet neuropathological criteria for DLB (ADLB). NPS trajectories over disease course in these subgroups is not well understood.ObjectiveWe investigated changes […]
  • Dementia prevalence and risk factors in people with and without HIV in Malawi: A medical record review
    March 5, 2025 by Haeok Lee
    BACKGROUND: Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) is experiencing a rapid increase in its aging population, including people living with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) (PLHIV). The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of dementia among PLHIV and people without HIV (POHIV) in Malawi.
  • Case Study 9: A 64-Year-Old Man With Rapidly Progressive Cognitive Impairment and Behavioral Changes
    February 18, 2025 by Syed N Kamal
    No abstract
  • Case Study 8: A 70-Year-Old Man With Memory Loss, Wandering, and Inappropriate Behaviors
    January 31, 2025 by Lakeshia C Gibson
    No abstract
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