There are many active research projects accessing and applying shared ADNI data. Use the search above to find specific research focuses on the active ADNI investigations. This information is requested annually as a requirement for data access.
| Principal Investigator | |
| Principal Investigator's Name: | Katie Lunnon |
| Institution: | University of Exeter |
| Department: | University of Exeter Medical School |
| Country: | |
| Proposed Analysis: | The exact cause of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) remains unclear, and it is only diagnosed after emergence of robust clinical symptoms, by which time the brain has already been damaged irreversibly. The aim of the current project is to develop biomarkers (biological markers) for an early diagnosis or prediction of AD and to examine the biological pathways altered in the blood in AD and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Using the Illumina HumanMethylation 450K array, we have already generated genome-wide epigenetic DNA methylation data in 312 blood samples from the AddNeuroMed cohort, including AD patients, controls, and a number of MCI patients, some of whom later progressed to AD. This data, along with additional clinical, gene expression, genotype and MRI imaging data, is currently being used to identify blood biomarkers for early AD. Furthermore, as part of our involvement in the European Medical Information Framework - ALzheimer's disease (EMIF-AD) initiative, we are currently analyzing Illumina MethylationEPIC array data from 1000 individuals, who have extensive clinical, genetic and imaging (PET/MRI) data available, with the aim of identifying dysfunctional pathways, networks and biomarkers in AD and MCI. We would like to use the methylation data in ADNI obtained using the Illumina MethylationEPIC array, along with the available clinical, genetic, and imaging data for replication and validation purposes. This would involve looking in the data at specific loci we have identified in our discovery analyses, in addition to performing meta-analyses. Additionally, we would like to compare this blood DNA methylation data to DNA methylation data we are analysing in the brain of AD donors, to identify common differentially methylated loci, and to determine if they are caused by genetic variation by looking for methylation quantitative trait loci (mQTLs). |
| Additional Investigators | |
| Investigator's Name: | Janou Roubroeks |
| Proposed Analysis: | Using the Illumina HumanMethylation 450K array, we have already generated genome-wide epigenetic DNA methylation data in 312 blood samples from the AddNeuroMed cohort, including AD patients, controls, and a number of MCI patients, some of whom later progressed to AD. This data, along with additional clinical, gene expression, genotype and MRI imaging data, is currently being used to identify blood biomarkers for early AD. Furthermore, as part of our involvement in the European Medical Information Framework - ALzheimer's disease (EMIF-AD) initiative, we are currently analyzing Illumina MethylationEPIC array data from 1000 individuals, who have extensive clinical, genetic and imaging (PET/MRI) data available, with the aim of identifying dysfunctional pathways, networks and biomarkers in AD and MCI. We would like to use the methylation data in ADNI obtained using the Illumina MethylationEPIC array, along with the available clinical, genetic, and imaging data for replication and validation purposes. This would involve looking in the data at specific loci we have identified in our discovery analyses, in addition to performing meta-analyses. Additionally, we would like to compare this blood DNA methylation data to DNA methylation data we are analysing in the brain of AD donors, to identify common differentially methylated loci, and to determine if they are caused by genetic variation by looking for methylation quantitative trait loci (mQTLs). Janou is leading on the AddNeuroMed analyses |
| Investigator's Name: | Ehsan Pishva |
| Proposed Analysis: | Ehsan's analyses involve meta-analysing the ADNI data with other DNA methylomic datasets we /collaborators have generated in blood. |
| Investigator's Name: | Marta Nabais |
| Proposed Analysis: | Marta is a PhD student working between the University of Queensland and the University of Exeter. Her current project aims at dissecting the etiological overlap between neurodegenerative and psychiatric disorders. More specifically, she will be applying meta-analytical methods to DNA methylation data across cohorts of different disorders. |
