IDS-TILDA is a longitudinal study researching ageing in Ireland among people with an intellectual disability aged 40 and over (n=approximately 750 people). Individuals with an intellectual disability, particularly those with Down Syndrome are at an increased risk of developing an Alzheimer’s related dementia. The IDS-TILDA collects information on Intellectual Disability and Dementia.
IDS-TILDA is a longitudinal study researching ageing in Ireland among people with an intellectual disability aged 40 and over (n=approximately 750 people). Individuals with an intellectual disability, particularly those with Down Syndrome are at an increased risk of developing an Alzheimer’s related dementia. The IDS-TILDA collects information on Intellectual Disability and Dementia.
The successful treatment of memory impairments and neurodegenerative disorders critically depends on our understanding of the storage and recollection of memory episodes. Specifically, an understanding of the interaction between amnesic and neurodegenerative syndromes would aid the development of effective treatments. One of the key questions in neuroscience is: how do brain networks encode experience-dependent memory? Answering this question will give us a universal tool to treat multiple brain disorders.
Project Aim(s): The objective is the assessment of the impact of alterations of white matter tract integrity on effective connectivity in the neural network underpinning working memory. Using brain imaging data it will examine the associations between brain structure and function in young and older healthy participants and how normal ageing alters the relationship between structure and function.
Increased knowledge about the pre-clinical and early clinical stages of Alzheimer's disease (AD) will be key in developing preventative strategies for the disease as well as development of therapeutic treatment strategies. In addition, this approach will contribute to the development of biomarkers for the early diagnosis of AD.
In 2013, the Irish National Audit of Dementia audited 35 acute hospitals in the Republic of Ireland, interviewing the senior hospital managers and geriatricians; directly observing the environment/ interviewing the clinical nurse manager of 77 wards, and reviewing 660 healthcare records of people with dementia who had been admitted to the hospitals.
As part of the BIOMARKPD initiative the Irish Network for Biomarkers in Neurodegeneration (IN-BIND) was established. It is a research infrastructure aimed at creating a functional network for clinical and laboratory based scientists working in this area. Similar to BIOMARKPD, the aims of IN-BIND are the standardisation of biomarker measurement across Ireland and Europe to include i) sample collection, ii) measurement, iii) and interpretation.
As part of the BIOMARKPD initiative the Irish Network for Biomarkers in Neurodegeneration (IN-BIND) was established. It is a research infrastructure aimed at creating a functional network for clinical and laboratory based scientists working in this area. Similar to BIOMARKPD, the aims of IN-BIND are the standardisation of biomarker measurement across Ireland and Europe to include i) sample collection, ii) measurement, iii) and interpretation.
No new Alzheimer's drug treatment had be licensed for 20 years until 2021, when the first Alzheimer's disease-modifying therapy (DMT) was licensed in the USA, giving hope of slowing/reversing the disease. Several new DMTs are expected. Unfortunately, offering DMTs in Ireland requires significant changes in Memory Clinic set-up, due to high drug costs and need for careful monitoring. Moreover, DMTs only work in people in early Alzheimer's, which is often unrecognized in Ireland.