Biological mechanisms of risk and resiliency in brain aging among ethnic minorities

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Abstract Minority health disparities have been well documented in the United States. These disparities exist in the domains of access to healthcare and participation in health research. Ethnic minorities in the United States also have increased risk of cardio- and cerebrovascular disease, stroke, and dementia. It is also known that lifestyle differences (such as exercise and nutrition habits), lower socioeconomic status, and diabetes are risk factors. With the increasing proportion of ethnic minorities in the United States, it is imperative to better understand disease processes that have historically been studied in Caucasian populations. The proportion of elderly that are Hispanic is expected to double, or even triple, in the coming decades. With an increasing population fraction, and increasing life expectancy, it is projected that upwards of a 6-fold increase in Alzheimer's disease will occur in Hispanics. Establishing the trust and partnership between Hispanic communities and world-class researchers is paramount to enable large-scale studies in order to diminish the disparity in minority health research. Our goal is to establish a collaborative foundation between the local minority communities and our research group at the University of Utah. This foundation will greatly facilitate ethnic minority participation in state-of-the-art genetic analysis, such as the newly developed technique of epigenetic aging, and advanced brain imaging research. Succeeding in this goal will allow us to begin to understand the specific risk and resiliency factors related to brain aging in the Hispanic community. The scope of the current project will establish a partnership between local Hispanic communities (approximately 75% Mexican-American) in the Salt Lake City region, neuroimaging researchers at the University of Utah, and collaborators at UCLA. The project will leverage existing university resources, such as the Community/Patient Engagement Studio, to bring the project team members, community stakeholders, and communities in an equal partnership to establish the foundation to perform state-of- the-art genetic and neuroimaging research. The project will synergistically work with local communities to reduce barriers for participation in research. Success of this project will open up avenues that will lead to large-scale studies utilizing cutting edge genetic (epigenetic aging), and neuroimaging techniques that have been applied in studies of Caucasians related to brain aging and Alzheimer's. Utilization of these advanced tools will allow for much-needed research into early signs of brain risk, as well as resiliency, in the Hispanic population. The derived engagement and recruitment strategies, along with these data will form the basis of a future, large-scale study to examine the Alzheimer's disease process in Hispanic-Americans.