How sleep and the body’s daily clock relate to dementia in Latin American people
Circadian Disturbance and Dementia in Latin America
This project looks at whether problems with sleep and the body’s circadian clock are linked to Alzheimer’s and frontotemporal dementia in Latino adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Massachusetts General Hospital NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11402417 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If you or someone like you were enrolled, the team would look at your sleep and daily activity patterns — the body’s "circadian" clock — and how they relate to memory and behavior changes. They will use the ReDLat database that already includes over 3,000 Latino adults ages 40–80 with Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal lobar degeneration, and people without dementia. Researchers will combine clinical information, cognitive testing, and measures of sleep and activity rhythms to find patterns tied to different types of dementia. The work focuses on Latin American communities to see whether findings from the US and Europe apply in this population.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are Latino adults aged about 40–80 with Alzheimer’s disease, frontotemporal dementia, or no cognitive impairment who are enrolled at or eligible for ReDLat network sites.
Not a fit: People outside the study age range, those without links to the Latin American populations studied, or those with other dementia types not included may not directly benefit from this project.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could point to sleep- or rhythm-based targets that might be changed to help delay or prevent dementia in Latin American populations.
How similar studies have performed: Previous research in the US and Europe has linked circadian disruption and sleep problems to cognitive decline, but applying this work specifically to Latin American populations is newer.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Massachusetts General Hospital — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Hu, Kun — Massachusetts General Hospital
- Study coordinator: Hu, Kun
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.