Amyloid imaging in PREVENT (AIP) version 1.0

  • Research type

    Research Study

  • Full title

    Amyloid Imaging in PREVENT (AIP) study.

  • IRAS ID

    223000

  • Contact name

    John O'Brien

  • Contact email

    john.obrien@medschl.cam.ac.uk

  • Sponsor organisation

    Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation Trust and University of Cambridge

  • Duration of Study in the UK

    1 years, 6 months, 26 days

  • Research summary

    The PREVENT Dementia Study is an ongoing study running in 4 sites in the UK, recruiting up to 750 people of both sexes, aged 40-59, who are cognitively normal (they do not have dementia or significant cognitive problems). Half the participants have a parent with dementia, the other half do not. The aim of PREVENT is to examine early memory, cognitive, imaging and other changes in people who are at a slightly increased risk of later developing dementia. The imaging which already takes place in PREVENT is Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) which can look at brain structure, function and some aspects of brain chemistry.
    However, MRI imaging cannot directly look at brain amyloid levels, yet it is known from other studies that early increases in brain amyloid can occur in people who later develop dementia. In this new study, we propose to use another brain imaging method, Positron emission tomography-computed tomography (PET-CT) imaging, to analyse brain amyloid beta levels in some of the participants participating in PREVENT.
    We aim to carry out PET-CT scanning on 180 participants selected from all of the PREVENT study sites across the UK. Participants in this new study will undergo two 25 minute PET-CT scans, which is the only procedure that will be done as part of the current study. We will compare amyloid scans between those at a slightly increased risk and a lower of future dementia, and also investigate whether there are associations between brain amyloid and memory tests now or in the future. Some participants in PREVENT have already agreed to have measurement of amyloid levels from cerebrospinal fluid which is taken during a simple procedure known as a lumbar puncture. We will also investigate how brain levels of amyloid from PET-CT imaging compare to levels measured in the spinal fluid.

  • REC name

    East of Scotland Research Ethics Service REC 1

  • REC reference

    18/ES/0009

  • Date of REC Opinion

    26 Feb 2018

  • REC opinion

    Further Information Favourable Opinion