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Newly published research from UCI MIND scientists shows that people carrying a genetic risk factor (APOE4) for Alzheimer’s disease experience faster and more severe memory loss, but other cognitive abilities remain largely unchanged. The study, published in Neurology and led by MD/PhD student Casey Vanderlip and Professor Craig Stark in the Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, found that APOE4 specifically affects how and when memory declines in Alzheimer’s disease. While APOE4 is known to increase the likelihood of developing Alzheimer’s disease, this study shows that it also changes the rate of decline, speeding up memory loss while other cognitive abilities…

Two UCI MIND faculty members and principal investigators on the Alzheimer Biomarkers Consortium-Down Syndrome (ABC-DS) study have been featured this week in AlzForum for an article they co-authored in Lancet Neurology on June 12th about the ability of blood tests to predict dementia in people with Down syndrome.  Drs. Head and Mapstone also authored a response to the article in AlzForum which can be read here. The article in Lancet Neurology can be found by clicking here.

Dr. Ahmad Sajjadi was quoted in the online publication, Prevention, about the important role aerobic exercise can play in improving well being cognition.

AlzForum summarized recent work led by Drs. Lindsay Hohsfield and Kim Green, and published in the highly cited journal Neuron, about a newly identified route for myeloid cells from bone marrow to enter the brain.  To read this  discovery, click here.    

Jean Paul Chadarevian, PhD, a postdoctoral fellow in the Blurton-Jones Lab at UCI MIND has been awarded a three-year, $225,000 grant from the Larry L. Hillblom Foundation to support his research to better understand how peripheral immune cells contribute to the development and progression of Alzheimer’s disease (AD).  For his project, "Examining the impact of peripheral monocyte-derived macrophage infiltration in AD pathogenesis," Dr. Chadarevian will investigate how immune cells beyond the blood-brain barrier infiltrate the brain and influence the development of disease pathology. This research is crucial to elucidating the role that immune cells from the bloodstream play in the neuroinflammatory…

Alzheimer’s disease develops slowly and silently, with biological changes in the brain beginning many years before any symptoms appear. A new study from researchers at the UC Irvine Institute for Memory Impairments and Neurological Disorders (UCI MIND) shows that we may be able to identify those most at risk using two simple and widely accessible tools: a blood test and a brief unsupervised memory assessment. The research, led by MD/PhD student Casey Vanderlip and Professor Craig Stark, found that combining a blood measure of pTau-217, a highly specific marker of Alzheimer’s disease, with a short digital memory assessment significantly improved…

UCI MIND is pleased to announce Ann & Charlie Quilter as our 2025 December to Remember Gala honorees. The Quilters’ unwavering commitment and generosity have made an extraordinary impact on UCI MIND’s mission, and we are deeply grateful for their continued support. Ann and Charlie have a deep history with UCI and UCI MIND. Ann achieved her MS of Public Administration in 1979 and Charlie received his PhD in History in 2010. The Quilters are pillars in the local Orange County community, particularly in Laguna Beach. Ann is the previous Laguna Beach Woman of the Year and Charlie is a…

Ghazaleh Eskandar-Sedighi, PhD Ghazaleh Eskandar-Sedighi, PhD, is a postdoctoral fellow, supervised by Mathew Blurton-Jones, PhD, professor of Neurobiology and Behavior in the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences. Dr. Eskander-Sedighi was recently awarded a prestigious Postdoctoral Fellowship in Alzheimer’s disease research from the BrightFocus Foundation. Ghazeleh’s research focuses on leveraging human stem cell-derived microglia and chimeric animal models to investigate protective microglial responses in the context of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Her BrightFocus Foundation project specifically aims to take advantage of novel, multi-faceted stem cell and chimeric mouse models to study the impact of the protective microglial ApoE3 Christchurch mutation on…

Clinical research in Alzheimer's disease (AD) has not always included all older adults. For example, most studies include few older Asian American adults. This limits our ability to understand or to treat diseases in all people. The Asian Cohort for Alzheimer's Disease (ACAD) is an international study that aims to fill a gap in Alzheimer's research by exploring the genetic and environmental factors that play a role in the risk for Alzheimer’s disease in Asian American and Asian Canadian populations. ACAD is currently enrolling a cohort of individuals of Chinese, Korean, and Vietnamese ancestry with plans to expand to other major…

UCI MIND Director, Joshua Grill, PhD, discusses the strengths and limitations of a recently published article from Washington University on disclosure of biomarker results.   To read the AlzForum summary and comments including Dr. Grill's, click here.

President Boon Ja Yoo Lee (center) awarded with Ellis Island Medal of Honor stands with decorated officers, friends and family who attended the event, including Dr. Hye-Won Shin (center lower left) and Eugene (second from left) and Carol (third from right) Choi. UCI MIND proudly celebrates Boon Ja Yoo Lee, who is a 2025 recipient of the prestigious Ellis Island Medal of Honor, for her outstanding contributions to Alzheimer's and dementia caregiving research, medical education, and public advocacy. As the first Korean American member of the UCI MIND Leadership Council, Boon Ja has played a transformative role in elevating the…

Last week was an especially busy one for members of our team at national Alzheimer’s disease research meetings in San Francisco. First, several of our investigators attended the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Centers Spring Directors’ Meeting, a semi-annual gathering of the 35 NIH funded Alzheimer’s Disease Research Centers (ADRCs). This meeting serves as an opportunity for ADRC teams to learn about programmatic updates, share research findings, and forge new collaborations.   Dr. Shi accepts a 2025 NACC REC Rising Star Award This year, Xiaoyu Shi, PhD, a UCI ADRC REC Scholar and Associate Professor of Developmental and Cell Biology, was awarded…

As one of the most diverse racial groups in the United States, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) populations are projected to grow significantly in the next 30 years —especially among older adults—yet they remain drastically underrepresented in aging, dementia, and caregiving research. This creates a gap in our understanding of how cultural, linguistic, and social factors affect health outcomes later in life. To address this disparity, the Collaborative Approach for AANHPI Research and Education (CARE) Registry was developed at UCSF with leadership from Dr. Joshua Grill and others at UCI MIND with the goal to easily connect…

The Daily Mail featured the Blurton-Jones Lab for their recent work on microglia replacement.  Read the article in the Daily Mail here.

Co-author Dr. Ghazaleh Eskandari-Sedighi and postdoctoral scholar in the Blurton-Jones Lab The Blurton-Jones lab, in collaboration with several other prominent research groups in the US and Japan, recently published an article in the journal Nature describing the role of TIM-3, a newly characterized molecule implicated in sporadic AD. The lead researchers on the project, Drs. Oleg Butovsy and Vijay Kuchroo, from Brigham and Women's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, discovered the signaling pathway through which TIM-3, an immune-checkpoint molecule (encoded by HAVCR2 gene) regulates microglia function. The Blurton-Jones Lab played a critical role in this project by providing the human microglia modeling platform needed to complement…

University of California, Irvine scientists have unveiled a groundbreaking new way to deliver disease-fighting proteins throughout the brain, potentially revolutionizing the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and other neurological disorders. By engineering human immune cells called microglia the researchers have created living cellular “couriers” capable of responding to brain pathology and releasing therapeutic agents exactly where needed. The National Institutes of Health-supported study, published recently in Cell Stem Cell, demonstrates for the first time that induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC)- -derived microglia can be genetically programmed to detect disease-specific brain changes – like amyloid plaques in Alzheimer’s disease – and to…

Assistant professor in Physiology & Biophysics and UCI MIND faculty co-authored a paper in the journal Nature that reveals a mechanism for memory preservation. To read a summary of the article, visit Brain and Behavior Research Foundation

Casey Vanderlip Casey Vanderlip, MD/PhD student in the laboratory of Dr. Craig Stark, has won the 2025 UCI Grad Slam Competition. The competition involves graduate students delivering 3-minute presentations on their research. Casey received $6,500 for his victory in the competition, which is intended to highlight the role of graduate trainees and enhance their public presentation skills.

On March 13, UCI MIND and the UCI Claire Trevor School of the Arts Department of Music collaborated to present "Finding Light: Alzheimer's Stories" by Robert S. Cohen. The evening featured a pre-concert panel that included the composer, the conductor of the UC Irvine Chamber Singers & Concert Choir, the Director of UCI MIND, and two research participants who represented the lived experience of individuals living with cognitive impairment. The panel was followed by an incredible two-act performance by the UCI Chamber Singers & Concert Choir. First, the Chamber Singers performed a collection of related and inspiring pieces. After an…

Research often feels incremental, building slowly on studies of large cohorts of people over long periods of time who enable scientists to answer critical questions with a high degree of precision needed to detect meaningful, if small, differences between groups. But every once in a while, even a single research volunteer can empower science to move faster, changing the way we think about disease mechanisms or opportunities for treatment. Alzheimer’s disease research includes many such cases. They include people with early onset of Alzheimer’s disease that helped us understand genetic causes of the disease, who also taught us much about…

Dr. Crystal M. Glover of UCI MIND joined the Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC) Neuroscience Next in Yaoundé, Cameroon during February 24-27, 2025. AAIC Neuroscience Next scientific events took place at 12 global hubs or locations, with Yaoundé representing one site. The co-organizers of AAIC Neuroscience Next – Cameroon Hub were Dr. Alfred K. Njamnshi, Founder of the Brain Research Africa Initiative (BRAIN), and Dr. Bernard Fongang of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. These scientific events aimed to showcase research and related efforts focused on brain health in international contexts to facilitate scientific advancements, foster…

Professor of Pathology at UCI and UCI MIND faculty member, Elizabeth Head, PhD, is featured in Newsweek because of a woman enrolled in her study who defied the odds. The woman did not experience the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease despite having Down syndrome, being of an advanced age,  and having the hallmark pathological features of the disease in her brain. To read the full article, click here.  To learn more about Dr. Head's research, check out our 2024 Annual Report.  

Marcelo Wood, PhD, professor and Chair of the department of Neurobiology and Behavior was quoted in The Transmitter about the decrease in admissions to PhD programs in Neuroscience fields including at UCI.  To read the article, click here

Today, the UCI MIND trainee-led organization ReMIND held its annual Emerging Scientists day at the UCI Student Center. This annual event gives UCI MIND graduate students, medical students, and post-doctoral scholars opportunities to get out of the laboratory to present their work through posters and oral presentations, to network with and learn from each other, and to generally stay excited about research and the progress we are making toward understanding and discovering solutions for Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders (ADRD) research. Today’s event showcased cutting edge science, ranging from innovative new mouse models and biomarker development to consideration of the…

UCI MIND faculty member, Dr. Liz Head, was interviewed for Scientific American Lost Women of Science podcast about Dr. Marthe Gautier, the scientist who discovered the genetic cause of Down syndrome.  To listen to the podcast, click here

This week, I was honored to participate in a meeting convened by colleagues at the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, organizers of the Alzheimer’s Prevention Initiative. The 1.5 day meeting in Pentagon City brought together a large variety of stakeholders, including researchers, advocates, pharmaceutical company scientists, non-profit organizations, and persons living with disease. It also included former US and current European regulatory officials (current US regulatory officials were not permitted to participate due to current federal communication pauses). The meeting was invigorating. Open dialogue ruled the day(s) and the optimism about progress toward discovering disease-delaying therapies was met with clear-eyed recognition of…

The recently published book “Doctored” has been promoted in a variety of outlets including the New York Times, STAT, and National Public Radio. The book squarely takes aim at Alzheimer’s disease research, collating recent articles in Science magazine and levying troubling accusations at a handful of prominent researchers in the field. The book paints with a broad brush, implicating the entirety of the field’s work and suggesting that these few cases cast doubt on the recently approved anti-amyloid treatments that have now entered the clinic and may hold promise for delaying the onset of cognitive problems due to Alzheimer’s disease.…

Dr. Leslie Thompson Leslie Thompson, PhD, a world renowned scientist and UCI MIND faculty member who studies Huntington disease, was recently quoted in Science about a new landmark paper in Cell. The paper uncovers a more dynamic picture of HTT, the gene responsible for causing the fatal neurodegenerative disease.  To read Dr. Thompson's quotes in Science and learn about the study, click here.

If you live with or have lost a loved one to Alzheimer’s disease you may find yourself with an inbox filled with well-intentioned emails from family and friends, about the latest research on Alzheimer’s disease or the new cure that drug companies don’t want you to know about. A recent New York Times article hits a bit differently. Linde Jacobs is a woman in her 30s with two young daughters. Four weeks ago, she lost her mother to frontal temporal dementia (FTD) and the article begins with her waiting to hear her genetic test result, that is whether she has…

Dean Frank LaFerla, PhD Frank LaFerla, PhD, Dean of the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences, was quoted in the OC Register for its naming of Charlie Dunlop as one the 125 most Influential people.  Dunlop generously donated $50 million to the school earlier this year. To read the list, click here

Joshua Grill, PhD An article in Knowable Magazine lists the top scientific stories of 2024 and the progress in dementia care research was included. Dr. Joshua Grill provided his insights on blood test and disease modifying therapies. Read the article here.

Frank LaFerla, PhD The Orange County Business Journal named Frank LaFerla, PhD, Dean of the Charlie Dunlop School of Biological Sciences, as one of the OC500 for Education. Read the recognition here

Since 2017, UCI MIND has partnered with the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement (WAM) at Cleveland Clinic, founded by Maria Shriver, to fund the Women’s Initiative. The initiative provides funding for research to better understand why women are at higher risk than men of developing Alzheimer’s disease. This year, the UCI MIND WAM at Cleveland Clinic Women’s Initiative is proud to support two exceptional investigators at UCI with groundbreaking research projects: Dr. María Corrada, Professor of Neurology in the School of Medicine and Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics in the Joe C. Wen School of Public Health, will explore "Estrogen Replacement Therapy and…

RAMP trainees stand next to Dr. Lorna Carlin (middle). The Daily Breeze, a local Southern California online news source, highlighted the Research and Mentorship Program (RAMP), a collaborative training initiative between UCI MIND and the UCI School of Medicine to pair 2nd year medical students with faculty studying neurodegenerative diseases. The goal is to inspire future clinicians to pursue research and to specialize in neurology and geriatrics. The program is supported by Dr. Lorna Carlin and Hilarity for Charity, a non-profit organization started by Laura Miller-Rogen and Seth Rogen.  Read the article here

Dr. Vivek Swarup, associate professor of Neurobiology and Behavior and UCI MIND faculty member, was quoted this week in the popular online Alzheimer's disease publication, AlzForum, regarding 4 new AD risk genes that have been identified.