Clinical Neuroscience: Alzheimer’s disease & cognitive impairment in older adults Katharine James Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit Division of Geriatric Medicine Department of Medicine Faculty of Health Sciences University of Cape Town Networking the Brain · UCT Cortex Club Inaugural Symposium · November 2014

Alzheimer’s disease & cognitive impairment in older adults Postdoctoral Research Fellow Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit Neurodegenerative disorders and cognitive functioning in older adults Factors associated with cognitive impairment in older adults from a South African population, e.g. psychosocial & physiological stress, ApoE4, beta-amyloid, and hippocampal volume 2 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

Research I am involved in… Past work: risk factors for Alzheimer’s disease Current work: delirium & cognitive impairment in older adults Future work: non-pharmacological interventions for mild cognitive impairment in older adults 3 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

Why it’s important Alzheimer’s disease is the leading cause of dementia in developed countries and probably also in the developing world Dearth of research into age-related diseases in South Africa, despite a growing ageing population Neuroimaging studies relatively new in our context, specifically with patients of older age First research projects of this nature in South Africa, where diseases of older persons are largely ignored and should provide new insights into the roles and interactions of psychosocial and biological factors in the pathogenesis of the disease 4 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

How we are conducting our research 5 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

Why Neuroscience? Rapidly emerging Truly multidisciplinary subject Seeking to understand the most complex organ of the body 6 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

My career path Research & clinical background: undergraduate and postgraduate training in psychology and clinical neuropsychology. Interest in asking and exploring questions  PhD in Psychology Additional courses: GCP, Clinical Science and Clinical Research Methods Funding journey: UCT, NRF and external funding – apply for all relevant funding opportunities Future of my research: Demonstrated the feasibility and practicalities of utilizing certain methods Laying down a platform for further research in this field to continue Include larger and more varied population groups 7 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

The future of Neuroscience at UCT How our unit can contribute to building neuroscience research at UCT: Team of individuals passionate about understanding and identifying clinical and pathophysiological aspects of neurodegenerative disorders Experience in both clinical and research settings Expertise with neurocognitive assessments Experience with neuroimaging post-processing (automated and manual techniques) Pursuing non-pharmacological interventions for mild cognitive impairment Interested in collaborating on other projects that may relate to these areas Ideas for neuroscience at UCT: A broad base of early-career and experienced researchers in this field at UCT  let’s harness these opportunities, facilitate networking and join forces to produce truly outstanding and innovative neuroscience research 8 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014

Acknowledgements University of Cape Town Division of Geriatric Medicine Department of Psychology Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit Funding sources National Research Foundation Ernst & Ethel Eriksen Trust Katharine.James@uct.ac.za 9 | Katharine James| Clinical Neurosciences Research Unit| Alzheimer’s disease| 7 November 2014