Get involved! See below for ways to participate in ongoing studies at The Picower Institute and The Aging Brain Initiative.
Prevention of Alzheimer's Disease in those at High Risk
- No history of seizure or epilepsy
- Between 55 - 90 years of age
- Immediate family history of Alzheimer's disease (parent, sibling, or child)
- Elevated fibrillar amyloid using 11C PiB PET at baseline between 20 - 70 CL
- Willing and able to undergo MRI brain and PET brain scans
- Adequate visual and auditory acuity to allow for neuropsychological testing
- Able to comply with neuropsychological testing and other study procedures in opinion of site PI
- Willing and able to complete baseline assessments, and willing to participate in 13-month study protocol
- Willing to provide blood samples at specified timepoints
- Willing to consider contributing CSF samples at specified timepoints, if asked
The investigators are recruiting participants aged 55+ with normal memory who have or had a close family member with Alzheimer's disease. 200 participants will undergo a blood test, and a subset will undergo an amyloid PET scan and only 50 participants who have cerebral amyloid deposits will continue in the study. Neither the participant nor the investigators will know whether the participant is receiving sham or active stimulation. Participants will use the device for 12 months at home, for 60 minutes each day when they are awake. Participants will come to the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston for 4-6 visits: before starting the stimulation, at 6 months, and after 12 months of usage. The participants will undergo PET scans, MRI, EEG, blood tests and memory tests and questionnaires at each visit to monitor progress. In addition, people may elect to allow us to study their cerebral spinal fluid. Participants will also wear a "fitbit" like watch to monitor sleep and activity throughout the study. The goal of this study is to evaluate whether stimulation with our device at 40Hz will reduce AD pathology in the brain.
For more information contact gamma.wave@mit.edu
Chronic Treatment of Alzheimer's Disease
- No history of seizure or epilepsy
- Subject is between the ages of 65 - 100
- No early onset Alzheimer's disease
- Subject must have mild Alzheimer's disease with a Mini Mental State Exam (MMSE) score of 19-26
- Subject is willing to sign informed consent document
- No amyloid reducing therapy
- No greater than 4 cerebral microbleeds or 1 macrobleed in their brain
- No treatment on a dosage of one or more psychiatric agents (e.g. antidepressants, antipsychotics, etc) for LESS THAN three months (a stable dose for greater than or equal to three months is ok)
- No active cancer/cancer-related treatments
- No medications that lower seizure threshold such as Wellbutrin, ciprofloxacin, levofloxacin, etc. as well as N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor antagonists (e.g. Memantine)
- No clinically significant suicide risk and, suicide attempt (in the last year), or unstable depression
- No stroke within the past 24 months
- No active implantable medical device including but not limited to implantable cardioverter defibrillator (ICD), deep brain stimulator (DBS), cardiac pacemaker, and/or sacral nerve stimulator
- Current or past history of any neurological disorder other than dementia
The investigators are recruiting 60 participants who have been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease to participate in this study. It will take place at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge, MA, and will last 6 months with 3 required visits to the institution: the first at baseline, the second at three months, and the last after six months. Visits will include blood tests, fecal samples, EEG (using light/sound stimulation), MRI, memory and cognitive tests, and questionnaires to monitor progress. Participants will also wear a "fitbit" like watch to monitor sleep and activity throughout the study. They will take home a gamma light and sound device to use daily. Half of the participants will receive sham treatment, meaning they will use the investigators' device, but the light and sound will not be set at 40Hz. The other half will receive the same device, but it will be set to stimulate the brain with 40Hz light and sound. Neither the participant nor the investigators will know whether the participant is receiving sham or active stimulation. Participants will use the device for six months at home, for 60 minutes each day when they are awake. After six months, participants will have the option of continuing in the study with annual visits, during which time they will be guaranteed the 40Hz active treatment, regardless of their original group assignment.
For more information contact gamma.wave@mit.edu
Acute Exposure of Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease to Gamma Frequency Stimulation
IRB #2110000486
This study looks at how the brain responds to light, sound, and tactile stimulation in Individuals with Parkinson’s Disease.
Criteria for Participation
- Be between the ages of 45-90
- Diagnosis of Parkinson’s in Hoehn & Yahr stage 2-3
- Have no history of seizures, epilepsy, or stroke
- not on an active treatment with an anti-epileptic agent
- no history of dementia or cognitive impairments, major depression, bipolar disorder, or any other major psychiatric condition
- no history of migraine headaches
This single-session, approximately 4-hour long study involves:
- pre-study mental health evaluations and memory tests- you will fill out a series of questionnaires
- EEG recordings- a cap with electrodes will be placed on your head to record your brain activity
- Exposure to light flicker, click sounds, and/or tactile vibrations delivered at high frequencies – You will be asked to sit in front of an LED panel with speakers and look at the panel while they output light and sounds that are meant to alter your brain activity. You will also be asked to touch and interact with a vibrating speaker device
- Additional cognitive tests following the stimulation
- Financial compensation at $20-30/hr for participation
If interested, please contact gamma.wave@mit.edu
Research study volunteers with APOE4 needed
Location: Houston, Texas.
ClinicalTrials.gov ID NCT05880849
Brief Summary
The purpose of this study is to test the safety, tolerability, and effects of choline in people with increased risk of Alzheimer's Disease (AD), also known as pre-symptomatic AD. Choline is a dietary supplement, but is being investigated to see if it has any effects on the progression to AD.
Detailed Description
The purpose of this study is to determine the safety and tolerability, as well as the biochemical effects of choline bitartrate over a 6-month treatment period in a moderately sized population harboring at least one copy of the APOE4 gene. APOE is a protein involved in lipid transport. Studies show that the APOE4 variant is strongly associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's Disease. It is unclear how APOE4 results in an increased risk for AD, but a recent study identified a novel molecular pathway, which showed that APOE4-induced dysfunction of lipid metabolism in neurons by cellular accumulation of unsaturated lipids. The investigators hypothesize that choline supplementation normalizes the APOE4-mediated dysregulation by normalizing the Kennedy pathway in neuronal cells, thus stabilizing the lipid metabolism and concomitantly restoring normal cell function by increasing phosphatidylcholine activity via the Kennedy pathway. To evaluate this, the investigators will test if choline supplementation will decrease the ratio of unsaturated lipids to saturated lipids (the fatty acid desaturation index) in cerebrospinal fluid by 15% and increase phosphatidylcholine by 100%.
For more information please visit ClinicalTrials.gov