Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center
The Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (CADRC) is a research program led by Case Western Reserve University (CWRU), Cleveland Clinic (CCF), University Hospitals (UH), the Louis Stokes VA, and MetroHealth. The CADRC is a center without walls as it is not a specific building or place. Instead, the CADRC includes top scientists and doctors from the Cleveland area, working together to learn more about Alzheimer’s disease and Related Dementias (ADRD). The goal of the CADRC is to help find treatments to improve the lives of patients and their families. The CADRC enrolls people with brain disorders like Alzheimer’s disease, Lewy Body Dementia, or Atypical dementia. We also enroll people without memory problems. Our CADRC clinical sites (CCF and UH) run memory tests, lab tests, and other brain tests such as MRI scans. The CADRC raises awareness of ADRD and involves people in the community.
Give us a call at 1-833-311-2372 for more information!
Needs Survey
Researchers from the Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (CADRC) welcome member of all communities to check out our website and provide their input on how the CADRC can best meet the needs of individuals and families. We also want to hear from groups/entities interested in advancing care and research on Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias. Please complete our CADRC needs survey to help us do a better job in serving our community and planning for programing that you feel would be most helpful: https://redcap.case.edu/surveys/?s=P3M38AFHF4AWHPDM
Letter from the Director
Director, CADRC
Over the past two years, with funding from the National Institute of Aging Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centers program, experts in the field of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias from Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Louis Stokes Cleveland VA, and University Hospitals have collaborated to establish the Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (CADRC). As the Director of the CADRC, I am well aware of the complex nature of this cross-institutional research Center. However, in just two years time, through the immense effort my colleagues and collaborators at these key Cleveland Institutions and with the common goal of advancing our knowledge of Alzheimer’s disease and Related Dementias the CADRC has become a success.
In this context, I am delighted that the National Institute of Aging has recently announced that it will fund the Cleveland ADRC for the next five years with a $15.4million grant to continue the important work of the Center.
I cannot sufficiently thank the tireless support of my colleagues and collaborators, the unwavering support of the involved Cleveland institutions, the research support staff, the Cleveland community, and of course the patients and their families who have been generous in making this Center program a success.
In the first two years the Clinical Core has successfully enrolled over 150 individuals who have provided biospecimens, completed neuroimaging scans, and contributed neuropsychological data to the Center. Such a task is a challenge in and of itself, yet our Clinical Core has gone a step further and seamlessly developed a process across our two clinical sites – University Hospitals and Cleveland Clinic – to enroll participants and complete the tests and procedures offered through the Center. The participants have been recruited through various means, however the Outreach, Recruitment, and Engagement Core has contributed a vast amount of time and effort establishing relationships with the community to not only recruit participants, but also to engage the community in this opportunity to contribute to the field of dementia research.
The CADRC goes beyond the recruitment and enrollment of research participants. Through the Biomarker Core, samples from our participants have been processed, analyzed, and stored for future research. Data from both our Clinical and Biomarker Cores have been successfully uploaded to the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center thanks to our Data Management and Statistics Core. The Neuropathology Core has performed autopsies on retroactive tissue and contributed this data to the CADRC database. This clinical, biological, and neuropathological data can be utilized by researchers across the nation to further understand Alzheimer’s disease and Related Dementias. Such data can be utilized to support new therapies, as with our Translational Therapeutics Core, which connects basic scientists with resources to test promising hypothesis that may someday lead to new therapies for dementia. Through our Center, we not only promote the use of novel ideas in research, but also the education of young researchers. The Research Education Component has built a platform for early career investigators in which they can further develop their research skills through completion of independent projects under the guidance senior investigators.
Together we plan to increase our understanding of these devastating disorders so that those of us who are clinicians can provide more hope to patients and their families.
Please explore our website for more information about the Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Center or call 1-833-331-2372 or email us contact@clevelandADRC.org.
Sincerely,
James B. Leverenz, M.D.
Director, Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center
Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health, Cleveland Clinic
Jane and Lee Seidman Endowed Chair for Advanced Neurological Research and Education Cleveland, Ohio
CADRC Investigator News
Lynn Bekris, PhD, Associate Staff at the Cleveland Clinic Genomic Medicine Institute and leader of the CADRC Biomarker Core, has been awarded a three-year, nearly $300,000 grant from the Aging Mind Foundation to study inflammatory factors involved in the early stages of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) in order to better understand the underlying cause of AD and inform novel therapeutic strategies.
“There is a growing body of evidence in the field that Alzheimer’s disease develops much earlier than previously thought, most likely decades before our current ability to clinically diagnose the condition,” said study co-author Andrew A. Pieper.
NEW ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE PATHWAY DISCOVERED, PROVIDING EARLIER TARGET FOR POTENTIAL THERAPIES – THE DAILY
“Our goal is to provide supportive intervention for those caring for someone with dementia, particularly during these transitional periods of caregiving for persons with dementia,” Zauszniewski said.
NURSING’S JACLENE ZAUSZNIEWSKI AWARDED $2.6M GRANT TO STUDY STRESS MANAGEMENT IN CAREGIVERS OF PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA – THE DAILY
OREC Team Member
Funding Announcement
National Institute on Aging Awards
$2 Million to Dr. Wenzhang Wang to Study
ApoE and Abeta Which is Believed to Be a Key Cause of Alzheimer’s Disease
July 1, 2022, CLEVELAND: The National Institute of Aging (NIA) has awarded a $2 million, 5-year research grant to Dr. Wenzhang Wang, who is a Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center (CADRC) Research Education Component Mentee. Dr. Wang will study ApoE, an Alzheimer’s disease (AD) risk factor gene, and Abeta, a protein that is deposited on the brain, in the regulation of mitochondria and lysosome interactions in AD. The project will be conducted at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine and falls under the umbrella of research conducted by the CADRC.
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National Institute on Aging Awards
$15.4 Million to Continue Support for
Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center
August 24, 2021, CLEVELAND: The National Institute on Aging of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) has awarded a grant expected to total $15.4million to continue funding the Cleveland Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. The new five-year award will support the multi-institution collaborative, which aims to accelerate research for Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.
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The CADRC is proud to unveil our new logo!
