Speech and language screening for Alzheimer's and frontotemporal dementia in Latino and English-speaking adults
An automated machine learning approach to language changes in Alzheimer’s disease and frontotemporal dementia across Latino and English-speaking populations
This project uses automated speech and language analysis to find signs of Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia in Latino and English-speaking adults.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of California, San Francisco NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (San Francisco, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11404656 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
You would be asked to speak naturally while your voice is recorded so researchers can extract sound and language features. The team will apply automated acoustic and linguistic analyses and machine learning to recordings from people with Alzheimer’s, frontotemporal dementia, and healthy controls across Spanish and English speakers. They will compare speech markers with standard cognitive tests and account for factors like bilingualism, sex, and brain profiles. The aim is to create a low-cost, culturally valid tool that works across languages and populations.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Adults with memory or language concerns, people diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or frontotemporal dementia, and healthy volunteers—especially Spanish-speaking Latinos and English-speaking adults—are the ideal candidates.
Not a fit: People who speak languages other than Spanish or English, have severe hearing or speech impairments that prevent clear recordings, or have unrelated neurological conditions may not benefit from this work.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could enable earlier, cheaper, and culturally appropriate speech-based screening and monitoring for Alzheimer’s and frontotemporal dementia.
How similar studies have performed: Previous automated speech and language studies have shown promise for detecting dementia, but most were small, lacked focus on Latino populations, and rarely distinguished Alzheimer’s from frontotemporal dementia.
Where this research is happening
San Francisco, United States
- University of California, San Francisco — San Francisco, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Gorno Tempini, Maria Luisa — University of California, San Francisco
- Study coordinator: Gorno Tempini, Maria Luisa
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.