Principal Investigators


John O'Brien

Institution


University of Cambridge

Contact information of lead PI


Country


United Kingdom

Title of project or programme


A PK11195 PET Study of neuroinflammation in dementia with Lewy bodies

Source of funding information


Alzheimer's Research UK

Total sum awarded (Euro)


€ 66,693

Start date of award


01/04/2015

Total duration of award in years


2

Keywords


Research Abstract


Dementia with Lewy Bodies (DLB) is a common cause of dementia, but remains poorly understood compared to conditions like Alzheimer’s disease (AD).   People with DLB have very different symptoms to those with other dementias; they have marked variations in symptoms (fluctuations) and visual hallucinations. Many have noted the similarity between DLB and delirium, a medical condition associated with inflammation. While raised levels of inflammation in the brain are known to occur in AD, it is not known whether inflammation in the brain occurs in DLB.  We propose to investigate this using brain imaging with Positron Emission Tomography and a chemical probe (called PK11195) that shows up inflammation in the brain.  We will study 20 people with DLB and compare their scans to healthy controls and people with AD to see if inflammatory changes occur in the brain with DLB. We will also see if brain inflammation in DLB is associated with inflammation in the blood. We will follow subjects over time to see whether people with higher levels of brain inflammation have a poorer outcome. This project will provide vital new information about brain inflammation in DLB which will help inform the direction of new treatments.

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