Michael Alosco, PhD, associate professor of neurology at Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM), and Gil Rabinovici, MD, professor of neurology and radiation at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) are on a two-year, $ 460,000 donated from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, which is part of the National Institutes of Health. Additional support for the study is provided by the Rainwater Charitable Foundation.
Alosco and Rabinovici study the efficacy of the second-generation tau PET detector (MK-6240) in the hope of detecting chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) in living humans. The study, “A Targeted Image for Neurodegenerative Disease Traumatic Encephalopathy (FIND-CTE),” includes 30 former National Football League players and 10 controls between the ages of 45-74. The Concussion Legacy Foundation handles the recruitment of participants.
Regular visits to the head, such as those from contact sports, have been linked to advanced brain diseases, including CTE. CTE is a progressive brain disease characterized by the presence of a protein called tau that is uniquely distinguished from any other neurological disorder. However, so far, the only way to confirm CTE is through brain autopsy. This initial hypersensitivity study will attempt to identify a method for the detection of CTE tau proteins before death using modern brain imaging methods.
This research uses a brain imaging technique called tau positron emission tomography to test the ability of a novel tau producer to detect the tau protein seen in CTE during a lifetime. If we can detect CTE during our lifetime, it will bring us closer to our ultimate goal of developing and testing potential therapies. “
Michael Alosco, PhD, Associate Professor of Neurology, Boston University School of Medicine
Alosco is an approved clinical neuropsychologist and co-director of the Clinical Center of Boston University’s Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center and is also a principal investigator at the BU CTE Center. His research is dedicated to studying the long-term effects of recurrent head effects and biomarker development for CTE and related diseases. Alosco has over 140 peer-reviewed publications, is a recipient of the NIH / NINDS K23 award, is Project Manager of an NIH-funded U54 multisite grant and serves as a PI and / or co-researcher on several federal and non-federal. federally funded grants.
Those interested in registering for the study can visit ConcussionFoundation.org/research.
Source:
Boston University School of Medicine