# Lifespan extension, Somatotropic signaling and Tauopathy

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM · 2024 · $185,625

## Abstract

Tauopathies are a class of neurodegenerative diseases characterized by accumulation of
abnormal and hyperphosphorylated tau protein in the brain including Alzheimer's disease (AD),
Parkinson's disease (PD), Frontotemporal dementia (FTD), and Motor Neuron Disease (MND).
Tauopathies occur primarily in elderly population and incidence rises with increasing age.
Unfortunately, the mechanisms for the age-dependent onset of tauopathies are unknown and
there are no effective therapeutic strategy. Aging is the biggest risk factor for tauopathies
related disorders, suggesting that molecular alterations contributing to the aging process may
represent common mechanisms for tau pathology. Employing the pathways that could slow or
delay the aging process may offer novel targets for new therapeutic strategies.
Murine mutant mice with slow rates of aging and murine tauopathy models with varying
phenotypic effects provide the opportunity to develop novel genetic models that will allow
studying the interaction of aging and tauopathy. Our proposal is to elucidate the role of the
somatotropic axis in the age-dependent susceptibility to tauopathies. Our study will generate
new models to study the interaction of aging with neurodegenerative diseases in the context of
mutations that slow the aging process.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10840329
- **Project number:** 5R21AG082327-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA AT BIRMINGHAM
- **Principal Investigator:** Liou Sun
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $185,625
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-05-15 → 2026-02-28

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10840329

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10840329, Lifespan extension, Somatotropic signaling and Tauopathy (5R21AG082327-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-23 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10840329. Licensed CC0.

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