Clinical trials now recruiting

Numerous clinical trials and studies are currently recruiting participants with and without Alzheimer's disease, mild cognitive impairment or related dementias. NIA’s Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral (ADEAR) Center provides a listing of trials and search tool that can help volunteers find an opportunity that may be right for them at www.nia.nih.gov/alzheimers/clinical-trials. You can also sign up to receive alerts of clinical trials listings as they are posted at www.nia.nih.gov/contact/e-alert-sign.

This update features several NIA-supported clinical trials and studies. For more information, call the ADEAR Center at 1-800-438-4380 (toll-free) or e-mail adear@nia.nih.gov.

ADNI2 Neuroimaging study seeks volunteers with Alzheimer’s, MCI

The ongoing Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative 2 (ADNI2) is urgently seeking additional volunteers age 55 to 90 with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease to participate in this groundbreaking effort.

ADNI2 builds on two previous studies to examine how brain imaging technology can be used with clinical, cognitive and genetic tests to measure the progression of MCI and Alzheimer's disease, starting in the earliest stages. This information will help researchers find ways to detect Alzheimer’s before symptoms become evident and to more efficiently measure the effectiveness of treatments in future clinical trials.

Participants must be in good general health, willing to undergo brain imaging scans, blood tests and at least one lumbar puncture, and joined by a study partner—a friend or relative who can go with the volunteer to all clinic visits. ADNI2 is taking place at 52 U.S. sites and three sites in Canada.

More about the ADNI2 study

Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer Network (DIAN) searches for clues in family members

The Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer’s Network seeks adult children (age 18 and older) with a biological parent who has a known genetic mutation for Alzheimer’s. Researchers are examining the progression of familial autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease (FAD)—a very rare, early-onset form of the disease—in families worldwide in hopes of uncovering clues to the more common late-onset form of the disease as well. Sites in the U.S., Europe, and Australia are recruiting 400 participants.

DIAN researchers are examining changes in clinical, cognitive, neuroimaging and biomarker indicators of Alzheimer’s that occur before dementia, comparing individuals who do and do not carry a genetic mutation for FAD. In a new phase of the study, the DIAN Expanded Registry, researchers will begin testing treatments to see if they can prevent or delay dementia in this group.

More about the DIAN study and more about the DIAN registry.

Trial of diabetes drug exendin-4 for Alzheimer’s, MCI underway in Baltimore

Researchers are inviting people in the Baltimore, MD, area who are age 65 and older and have early Alzheimer’s or MCI to participate in a 3-year trial of the FDA-approved diabetes medication exenatide to treat Alzheimer’s disease. The trial will test the drug’s safety and effectiveness in slowing Alzheimer’s progression. Exenatide is a synthetic version of exendin-4, a hormone found in the saliva of the Gila monster, and is currently used to treat diabetes (See feature story).

More about the Exendin-4 for the Treatment of Alzheimer’s Disease study

Resveratrol study launched

Can resveratrol (a dietary supplement) help delay the progression of Alzheimer’s disease? A new clinical trial to find out is now recruiting.

The Resveratrol for Alzheimer’s Disease trial, launched in May, is looking at whether daily treatment with a resveratrol dietary supplement can help delay or alter the deterioration of memory and daily functioning in people with early Alzheimer’s. Resveratrol is a compound derived from plants, and is found in red wine and red grapes.

The researchers are seeking 120 people, age 50 or older, with mild to moderate Alzheimer’s disease to participate at more than 25 sites across the country for 12 months. A small group of 15 participants will be asked to take part in a sub-study to measure resveratrol levels in the blood over a 24-hour period.

More about the Resveratrol for Alzheimer’s Disease study

SPRINT examines effects of lowering blood pressure

High blood pressure is a leading cause of death and disability in the U.S. and worldwide. Over 60% of people over age 65 have high blood pressure, and the number of people with high blood pressure is increasing. SPRINT (Systolic Blood Pressure Intervention Trial), a major study sponsored by the National Institutes of Health, is testing whether a lower recommended blood pressure might help to decrease stroke, heart disease, progression of chronic kidney disease, and age-related losses of memory and thinking.

The study seeks more than 9,000 volunteers age 50 or older with high blood pressure—systolic (upper) number of at least 130—who have a history of heart disease or chronic kidney disease or are at risk for heart disease, but with no history of diabetes or stroke. Participants can enroll in the study at over 90 clinics across the United States and in Puerto Rico. A sub-study of 2,800 SPRINT participants, SPRINT-MIND, will specifically examine the effect of lowering blood pressure on the risk of dementia or cognitive decline.

SPRINT participants will be seen regularly by experts in blood pressure management for a period of 4 to 8 years and receive blood pressure medication at no cost.

More about the SPRINT-MIND study

Page last updated: August 9, 2012