# Characterization of molecular biomarker profiles of AD throughout its pathobiolgical continuum

> **NIH NIH P01** · WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY · 2021 · $149,266

## Abstract

Project 1 Project Summary
Almost all studies of Alzheimer disease (AD) investigating “molecular biomarkers” that reflect the brain lesions
of the disorder are conducted in research volunteers who overwhelmingly are of the non-Hispanic white race.
Project 1 of the Healthy Aging and Senile Dementia (HASD) Program Project Grant will use the molecular
biomarkers of AD to predict which cognitively normal older adults will develop its symptoms (i.e., dementia).
However, Project 1 also will examine potential racial differences in these molecular biomarkers between
African Americans and non-Hispanic whites.
To accomplish its Aims, Project 1 will interact closely with other components of HASD to innovatively increase
the number of African American research volunteers who participate in molecular biomarker procedures,
including positron emission tomography (PET) imaging studies and lumbar puncture to obtain cerebrospinal
fluid (CSF) for analysis. The Specific Aims of Project 1 are to:
 1. Compare molecular biomarkers of AD (i.e., amyloid PET, tau PET, and CSF measures of amyloid-
 beta42 and tau) at baseline and longitudinally in African Americans and non-Hispanic whites.
 2. Compare in African Americans and non-Hispanic whites the rates of conversion from cognitively normal
 to symptomatic AD.
 3. Correlate the results from Specific Aims 1 and 2 with other variables obtained in HASD: clinical
 information (including the presence of comorbid disorders, such as cerebrovascular disease, and
 socioeconomic status), cognitive measures, indicators of sleep disruption, genetic variants for risk and
 protection, imaging measures (including magnetic resonance imaging and PET studies of the brain),
 and CSF analytes.
 4. Increase the number of brain autopsies in African Americans to compare the neuropathological features
 of AD, including the presence of comorbid diseases, with non-Hispanic whites.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10131744
- **Project number:** 5P01AG003991-38
- **Recipient organization:** WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY
- **Principal Investigator:** JOHN MORRIS
- **Activity code:** P01 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $149,266
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 1997-01-01 → 2024-04-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10131744

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10131744, Characterization of molecular biomarker profiles of AD throughout its pathobiolgical continuum (5P01AG003991-38). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10131744. Licensed CC0.

---

*[NIH grants dataset](/datasets/nih-grants) · CC0 1.0*