Promoting High-Impact Alzheimer's Disease Research through the Use of Statewide Registries: Expanding Diversity in Aging Research.

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PROJECT SUMMARY/ABSTRACT Establishing mechanisms for increasing the pipeline of scientists who conduct research in aging and Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD), and mentoring these scientists, are national public health priorities. This is evidenced in the long-term goals of the National Institute on Aging (NIA), as well as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and Alzheimer’s Association “State and Local Public Health Partnerships to Address Dementia: The 2018-2023 Road Map”. The proposed project responds to these priorities through the establishment of an annual conference entitled, “Promoting High-Impact Alzheimer’s Disease Research through the Use of Statewide Registries: Expanding Diversity in Aging Research.” This conference series also addresses the NIA’s ADRD Implementation Milestone 4.S: “To improve and increase training, including for individuals who are members of under-represented populations, and of different career levels of scholars who conduct health disparities research in AD/ADRD.” The specific aims of the conference series are to: 1: Provide a forum for underrepresented minority (URM) and non- URM researchers to learn how to conduct high-impact ADRD research using statewide registries; 2: Provide a mechanism for senior faculty/experts to mentor junior URM researchers in AD registry research through the submission of a) an abstract for presentation at the following year’s R13 conference, and b) a manuscript to a peer-reviewed journal; 3: Provide a mechanism to support ongoing networking among URM and non-URM researchers; and 4: Conduct process and outcome evaluations of the program, making modifications as needed. The proposed conference series leverages the MPIs’ successful leadership in providing mentoring to URM and non- URM faculty and undergraduate students through several active NIA-supported mechanisms, including the Alzheimer’s- related Resource Centers for Minority Aging Research (RCMAR; Carolina Center on Alzheimer’s Disease and Minority Research (CCADMR); MPIs Levkoff & Friedman, Research Education Component Lead Ingram), the South Carolina- Advancing Diversity in Aging Research (SC-ADAR; PI Levkoff) program, and the CDC’s Healthy Brain Research Network (PI Friedman). Similar to our NIA-funded projects, the conference series will extend our statewide collaborations with Clemson University and the Medical University of South Carolina (MUSC), and three Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) - Claflin University, Allen University, and South Carolina State University. Additional partners include the only active statewide AD registries in the United States (US), which are located in Georgia, West Virginia, and South Carolina (the last of which is housed within an office that is co-directed by MPI Friedman). Additional NIA-funded partners include researchers affiliated with the UCLA RCMAR Coordinating Center, University of Southern California (USC) AD-RCMAR, and USC/UCLA Center on Biodemography and Population Health. The conference series will contribute to our ultimate goal of diversifying the research workforce in aging and ADRD and advancing the science on ADRD disparities.