# Neuroimaging Core

> **NIH NIH P30** · WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES · 2020 · $1,266,879

## Abstract

The proposed Neuroimaging Core (NIC) of the newly established Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Core 
Center (ADCC) will provide biennial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), amyloid positron emission 
tomography (11C-PiB PET) and tau PET (18F-AV-1451) to 200 ethnically diverse Clinical Core participants (100 
normal older adults and 100 adults with mild cognitive impairment/MCI; 1/3 of each from underrepresented 
groups) using state of the art protocols optimized for sharing with the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center 
(NACC) and with other investigators. In addition, innovative specialized sequences to assess vascular integrity 
will be conducted, including multiphase pseudocontinuous arterial spin label (ASL) MRI, and controlled 
measures of hypercapnic cerebrovascular reactivity (CVR). Thus, the new NIC will enable Wake Forest to 
provide specialized resources to conduct high impact research examining the longitudinal interaction of AD and 
vascular pathologies in an ethnically diverse, deeply phenotyped cohort. To facilitate translational research, the 
NIC will also apply AD MRI protocols to non-human primates (NHP) who spontaneously develop age-related 
amyloid pathology and metabolic/vascular disease. The Core will leverage an extensive imaging infrastructure 
with dedicated research resources, including a 3T Siemens Skyra MRI scanner with a high-resolution 32- 
channel head coil, GE 16-slice PET/CT Discovery ST Scanner, GE PETtrace 10 Cyclotron Radiotracer 
Production System, and automated analytic pipelines. NIC members will also carry out educational and 
consultation activities to encourage the expansion of AD-related imaging research at Wake Forest. Led by 
neuroradiologist Christopher Whitlow, MD, PhD, Director of the Translational Imaging Program of the Clinical 
and Translational Science Institute (CTSI), and Sam Lockhart, PhD, a neuroimaging investigator with extensive 
published experience in MR and PET imaging related to AD, vascular pathology, and cognition, the NIC will: 1) 
conduct state of the art longitudinal MR, amyloid, and tau imaging in Wake Forest ADCC’s ethnically diverse 
Clinical Core, using protocols aligned with the national ADC network; 2) refine and implement sensitive MRI 
protocols for vascular integrity (ASL and CVR) that will facilitate understanding of the relationships between 
vascular and AD pathology and provide methodological innovations to enhance the reliability of multi-site 
vascular imaging; 3) develop and implement neuroimaging protocols for innovative translational NHP models; 
and 4) integrate quality-controlled imaging data with clinical and other biomarker data in a user-friendly 
relational database to facilitate dissemination and use by ADCC, NACC and other investigators.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 9983925
- **Project number:** 5P30AG049638-05
- **Recipient organization:** WAKE FOREST UNIVERSITY HEALTH SCIENCES
- **Principal Investigator:** CHRISTOPHER T WHITLOW
- **Activity code:** P30 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2020
- **Award amount:** $1,266,879
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2020-07-01 → 2022-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/9983925

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 9983925, Neuroimaging Core (5P30AG049638-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-01 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/9983925. Licensed CC0.

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