Project Overview

Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) is tough to diagnose as it requires understanding patient history, symptoms, blood tests,and brain scans. Current brain scans mainly look at how glucose and amyloid (a protein) behave, but these tests aren’t very reliable. Researchers aim to create a new brain scan that can better identify AD by focusing on neuroinflammation, which is how the brain reacts to injury or illness, particularly through how it metabolizes fructose.

This grant seeks to create a new brain imaging test that can more accurately diagnose AD by focusing on how the brain uses fructose, a type of sugar, that is only metabolized by the brain during disease. This test aims to track neuroinflammation, which is the brain’s response to damage. By doing so, researchers hope to improve not only the diagnosis of AD but also how well treatments are working for patients over time.

The research team has developed a new imaging tool called [18F]4FDF, basically a radioactive fructose, to trace fructose metabolism in the brain. This tool will be tested in a mouse model of AD to see how well it can identify neuroinflammation at various stages of the disease. They’ll also determine how effective this new imaging tool is in monitoring responses to treatments that focus on reducing the harmful effects of amyloid plaques in the brain.

The researchers expect that using [18F]4FDF will provide a more accurate way to diagnose AD than current methods. They hope that this new imaging technique will not only help predict how severe the disease is but also show how well a treatment is working in real-time. If successful, this approach could lead to earlier and more personalized treatment options for those with Alzheimer’s Disease.

This study is crucial because it highlights the significance of neuroinflammation in AD, which has been less understood compared to amyloid buildup. By developing a method to visualize this inflammation, the researchers aim to improve diagnosis and treatment strategies. Their findings could directly impact clinical practices and help better manage Alzheimer’s, making it a significant advancement for both patients and healthcare providers.

Principal Investigator

Adam Shuhendler , University of Ottawa

Team Members

Stephen Ferguson, University of Ottawa

Partners and Donors

Alzheimer Society of Canada