# Arterial Stiffness and Brain Health in African Americans

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL · 2020 · $63,558

## Abstract

Cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) are pressing public health
concerns as the population ages. In the U.S., African Americans have a high risk of ADRD compared with
other population groups; however, factors explaining this disparity are unknown. Greater central arterial
stiffness is posited to alter microvasculature structure and function in the brain, contributing to cerebral small
vessel disease, cognitive impairment, and risk of ADRD. No reports to date have examined these associations
in a large, well-characterized African American population. Similarly, the salient roles of sex, type 2 diabetes,
and hypertension in these associations have not been addressed, although African Americans have a high
burden of cardiometabolic risk factors and hypertension that are associated with both greater arterial stiffness
and risk of ADRD. We propose to examine these gaps in an ancillary study to the 2020-2022 Exam 4 of ~2,700
participants, ages 41-104 years, in the Jackson Heart Study (JHS), an ongoing and deeply phenotyped cohort
of African Americans. We propose to add pulse wave velocity, a non-invasive arterial stiffness measurement,
to all participants during Exam 4. All other data will be available from JHS and Atherosclerosis Risk in
Communities-Neurocognitive study (ARIC-NCS). To evaluate temporal change in arterial stiffness, we will
leverage existing arterial stiffness measures from those who also participated in the ARIC-NCS Visit 5 (2011-
2013, N=1,078).
The study aims are the following: Aim 1. Estimate the association of central arterial stiffness and the burden of
cerebral white matter hyperintensities, subcortical infarcts, and markers of brain atrophy. Aim 2. Estimate the
association of central arterial stiffness and domain-specific cognitive function. Aim 3. Characterize the 8-year
change in central arterial stiffness and its association with the burden of cerebral white matter hyperintensities,
subcortical infarcts, and brain volumes at Exam 4 among older adults in participants in both the ARIC-NCS and
JHS studies. For all aims, we will evaluate sex, type 2 diabetes, and hypertension as potential effect modifiers.
This cost-efficient ancillary study will, for the first time, contribute information on the association of central
arterial stiffness and brain structure and function in a large sample of African Americans, a population exposed
to high levels of hypertension and metabolic impairments and at risk for ADRD. The inclusion of middle-aged
adults and measures of cerebral small vessel disease, cerebral infarcts, and impaired cognitive function will
provide insights into opportunities for intervention prior to onset of cognitive impairment or overt ADRD.
Understanding how arterial stiffness influences brain health will contribute novel information toward reducing
health disparities and promoting cognitive resilience.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10081072
- **Project number:** 3R01AG062488-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIV OF NORTH CAROLINA CHAPEL HILL
- **Principal Investigator:** Michelle Meyer
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $63,558
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-07-01 → 2023-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10081072

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10081072, Arterial Stiffness and Brain Health in African Americans (3R01AG062488-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10081072. Licensed CC0.

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