Pathways Linking Late-Life Depression to MCI & Dementia

描述（由研究者提供）：本修订版R 01应用程序的目标是研究晚年抑郁症（LLD）、认知障碍和进行性神经退行性变之间的关系。指导性假设是LLD患者由于不同的潜在神经病理学变化而具有不断发展的认知障碍，其通常表示为轻度认知障碍（MCI）。这些神经病理学和认知变化是风险调节剂，降低大脑储备能力，进而增加患阿尔茨海默病（AD）的风险。为了实现这一目标，我们将招募LLD、MCI和正常对照受试者，以丰富我们现有的队列（通过Butters博士现有的K 01奖（MH 01684）“晚年抑郁症的认知功能过程”收集，共包括150名老年、非痴呆、非抑郁受试者，60名非抑郁MCI受试者和270名LLD受试者。利用匹兹堡大学晚年情绪障碍干预研究中心（MH 52247）和阿尔茨海默病研究中心（AG 05133）的联合基础设施，我们将完成一个详细的神经行为！评估，包括临床，神经心理学，神经影像学和生物学标志物，使用这些数据来评估与MCI或痴呆发展相关的因素。受试者将每年进行至少三年的研究，使我们能够使用纵向数据来评估一系列相关的假设，这些假设假定了老年抑郁症患者发展认知障碍的途径，并可能导致一些人发展为痴呆症。

DESCRIPTION (provided by investigator): The goal of this revised R01 application is to investigate the relationships among late-life depression (LLD), cognitive impairment and progressive neurodegeneration. The guiding hypothesis is that LLD patients have evolving cognitive impairments as a consequence of distinct underlying neuropathological changes, which frequently are expressed as Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI). These neuropathological and cognitive changes are risk modifiers, lowering brain reserve capacity, and in turn, increasing risk of developing Alzheimer's Disease (AD). In order to pursue this goal we will enroll LLD, MCI, and normal control subjects to enrich our existing cohort (gathered through Dr. Butters' existing K01 Award (MH01684), "The Course of Cognitive Functioning in Late-Life depression" to include a total of 150 elderly, non-demented, non-depressed subjects, 60 nondepressed MCI subjects and 270 LLD subjects. Using the joint infrastructure of the University of Pittsburgh's Intervention Research Center for Late-Life Mood Disorders (MH52247) and the Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (AG05133) we will complete a detailed neurobehaviora! evaluation, including clinical, neuropsychological, neuroimaging and biological markers, using these data to evaluate the factors associated with the development of MCI or dementia. Subjects will be studied annually for at least three years, allowing us to use longitudinal data to evaluate a series of linked hypotheses that postulate the pathways by which elderly, depressed patients develop cognitive impairment, and which may lead some to develop dementia.