Events
The Sticht Center for Healthy Aging and Alzheimer prevention presents a community-wide educational series called: The Aging Well Series. This series features renowned experts who share insights and meaningful tips for achieving brain health and preserving memories. For more information, please visit Aging Well Series.
News
March 10, 2026 – Guardian Angel Thrift (GAT) announced today that it will invest more than $211,000 in Alzheimer’s research across North Carolina during the 2025–2026 funding cycle, continuing its mission to accelerate progress toward prevention, treatment, and ultimately a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. This year’s commitments support leading academic and clinical research institutions advancing innovative approaches to understanding and combating dementia. Guardian Angel Thrift will be supporting up to two new investigators at the Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center through one- to two-year pilot research projects designed to generate preliminary data and position emerging scientists for larger-scale federal funding. Additional Alzheimer’s research projects will also be funded at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and the Duke/UNC Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center. Read the full press release.
October 16, 2025 – A new clinical trial led by Dr. Suzanne Craft, director of the Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, reveals that empagliflozin (Jardiance) and intranasal insulin safely improve brain health in older adults with mild cognitive impairment or early Alzheimer’s disease. Published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, the study found that empagliflozin reduced tau and vascular markers while enhancing blood flow, and intranasal insulin improved cognition, white matter integrity, and immune function. Both treatments target upstream metabolic and vascular disruptions that drive Alzheimer’s disease progression. Supported by the Alzheimer’s Association’s Part the Cloud program, the Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, and Kulynych Center for Memory and Cognition, with intranasal delivery devices provided by Aptar Pharma, the trial highlights metabolism as a promising frontier for Alzheimer’s therapies. Read the full press release.
March 4, 2025 – The Wake Forest Alzheimer's Disease Research Center extends congratulations to Dr. Da Ma for receiving an Alzheimer’s Association International Research Grant Program (IRGP) award. This award will support Dr. Ma’s research, “Cardiometabolic-integrated neuroimaging genomics for Alzheimer's disease.” Dr. Ma will investigate the joint cardiometabolic and genomic contribution toward distinctive subtypes of AD-related pathophysiologic patterns across different stages of ADRD progression. The Alzheimer's Association’s IRGP “funds investigations to advance our understanding of Alzheimer's disease, identify new treatment strategies, improve care for people with dementia, and further our knowledge of brain health and disease prevention.”
December 6, 2024 – A new study led by M.D./Ph.D. student Sudarshan Krishnamurthy, with Dr. James R. Bateman and other members of the Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, explores the impact of neighborhood disadvantage on cardiometabolic and cognitive health. Published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment & Disease Monitoring, the study reveals that individuals without mild cognitive impairment (MCI) living in disadvantaged neighborhoods experience higher blood pressure and lower cognitive scores. The research emphasizes the role of social determinants of health, such as housing, education, and income, in shaping risks for cognitive decline and dementia. Click here for the full press release.
June 20, 2024 – Dr. Michelle Mielke, a member the Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, has uncovered new insights into the effects of premenopausal bilateral oophorectomy (PBO) on brain health using data from the Mayo Clinic Study of Aging. Published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, the study reveals that women who undergo PBO, particularly before age 40, exhibit reduced white matter integrity later in life. These findings emphasize the role of hormonal changes in cognitive decline and dementia risk, with Dr. Mielke highlighting the need for larger, more diverse studies to expand on this work. Read the full press release.
May 16, 2024 – The Wake Forest Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center extends congratulations to Dr. Marc Rudolph for receiving the NACC Rising Star Award at the 2024 Spring ADRC Meeting, hosted by the National Alzheimer’s Coordinating Center in Austin, TX. Marc’s work, "Evaluation of ALZpath p-tau217 in a diverse community-dwelling cohort," was chosen from a competitive field of 35 posters.