# American Indian CRIC Study of Diabetic Kidney Disease and Alzheimer Disease.

> **NIH NIH R01** · UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR · 2020 · $378,748

## Abstract

Data derived from populations suggest that several comorbidities of diabetes including chronic kidney disease
(CKD) increase the risk for cognitive impairment, structural brain changes associated with dementia as measured
with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and dementia. The relationship between cerebrovascular disease and
cognition, especially in diabetic kidney disease remains understudied and poorly understood in American Indians
(AIs). More than 3.7 million AI/ANs, Blacks, Latinos, and Asians suffer from Alzheimer’s disease (AD), and
experience earlier onset of cognitive impairment and AD than Whites experience. The few studies of AD in
AI/ANs are limited by small, single-community samples. Dementia due to cerebrovascular disease is often
referred to as “vascular dementia" or vascular cognitive impairment and dementia (VCID). Despite the high
prevalence of VCID, the biological basis of this disease and its relationship with structural brain changes
measured with MRI has been far less studied than Alzheimer’s disease. A striking feature of VCID is that risk to
date has been difficult to predict based on medical diagnosis alone. The relationships between MRI measures
(white matter hyperintensity volume, diffusion measures, such as fractional anisotropy and mean diffusivity,
arterial cerebral blood flow, total brain volume, total white matter volume, total gray matter volume and
hippocampal volume), neuropsychological testing, and neurological evaluation including balance testing will be
evaluated to identify correlates of cerebrovascular disease and cognitive ability. Resting state functional MRI will
be used to analyze the connectome in order to separate AD from VCID.
We are prosing following aims for the supplement-funding request:
Aim 1) Describe and analyze the co-prevalence of diabetic CKD and AD (cerebrovascular disease, cognitive
impairment, and related dementia) among the AI population using the National IHS Epidemiology Data Mart.
Hypothesis: The odds of AD will be higher among AI patients with diabetic CKD compared to AI patients
without CKD adjusting for other covariates.
Aim 2) Establish AI-specific normative values of MRI atrophy in brain regions selectively affected by AD and
evaluate AD-related regional atrophy in combination with cognitive and behavioral changes to calculate
prevalence of probable AD in Zuni Indians with diabetic CKD.
Aim 3) Estimate associations of MRI markers of probable AD with measures of cognitive and physical
function, independent of the effects of vascular brain injury in Zuni Indians with diabetic CKD.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10113352
- **Project number:** 3R01DK119199-02S1
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO HEALTH SCIS CTR
- **Principal Investigator:** VALLABH O SHAH
- **Activity code:** R01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $378,748
- **Award type:** 3
- **Project period:** 2019-07-09 → 2024-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10113352

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10113352, American Indian CRIC Study of Diabetic Kidney Disease and Alzheimer Disease. (3R01DK119199-02S1). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-22 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10113352. Licensed CC0.

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