Memory resilience in people who live to 100 and their adult children
Resilience/Resistance to Alzheimer's Disease in Centenarians and Offspring (RADCO)
Researchers are comparing very old people who keep thinking clearly and their adult children to find biological and lifestyle factors that protect memory.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Boston University Medical Campus NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Boston, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11190868 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
This project follows people who lived to 100 with unusually preserved thinking, their grown children, and some spouses, and collects detailed memory testing, brain scans, blood markers, and when possible brain tissue after death. You would receive neuropsychological exams, MRI and other imaging, blood tests for Alzheimer's-related proteins, and genetic analyses. The team defines different 'resilience' profiles from these measures and then searches for genes, proteins, or other mechanisms that seem to protect thinking. Findings are aimed at pointing toward treatments or prevention strategies based on what helps these resilient people stay cognitively healthy.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are people aged ~100 with preserved cognition, their adult children, or spouses willing to undergo testing and visits at the study site.
Not a fit: People with advanced Alzheimer's dementia are unlikely to get direct clinical benefit from participation because the project focuses on protective factors rather than immediate treatments.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the work could point to new targets for drugs or lifestyle approaches that prevent or delay Alzheimer's.
How similar studies have performed: Prior 'superager' and centenarian studies have found promising protective markers and genes, but translating those findings into approved treatments remains experimental and ongoing.
Where this research is happening
Boston, United States
- Boston University Medical Campus — Boston, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Perls, Thomas T — Boston University Medical Campus
- Study coordinator: Perls, Thomas T
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.