How genes affect aging, behavior, and Alzheimer’s risk across diverse communities
Studying the Genetics of Aging, Behavioral, and Social Phenotypes in Diverse Populations
This project will build tools to make genetic studies and risk scores work better for people of many ancestries to improve understanding of aging and Alzheimer’s-related traits.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Southern California NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Los Angeles, UNITED STATES) |
| Project ID | NIH-11323049 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you or a family member are worried about Alzheimer’s or aging, this project is making new genetic tools to include people from many racial and ethnic backgrounds. The team will create GRMMA, a method that helps combine mixed-ancestry genetic data without excluding non-European participants, and SBayes-Universal, a fast way to make polygenic risk scores by combining results across populations. They will test these tools on large human datasets like the UK Biobank and share the software and tutorials publicly. The goal is to make genetic findings about aging and Alzheimer’s more accurate and relevant for diverse communities.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: People from diverse racial and ethnic backgrounds who have genetic and health data in cohorts or biobanks, including individuals with aging-related conditions or Alzheimer’s, are the most relevant to this work.
Not a fit: People without genetic data or those seeking immediate clinical treatments are unlikely to gain direct, short-term medical benefit from this methods-focused project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, these tools could make genetic research and future genetic risk predictions for aging and Alzheimer’s more accurate and applicable to people from underrepresented ancestries.
How similar studies have performed: Earlier multi-ancestry GWAS and polygenic score methods have improved inclusiveness but still leave biases and gaps, so this approach is a novel attempt to overcome known limitations.
Where this research is happening
Los Angeles, UNITED STATES
- University of Southern California — Los Angeles, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Turley, Patrick Ansel — University of Southern California
- Study coordinator: Turley, Patrick Ansel
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.