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USC Mark and Mary Stevens Neuroimaging and Informatics Institute Newsletter / Summer & Fall 2023

FEATURED PRESS RELEASE

Danny JJ Wang receives new funding to study small vessel disease in Asian Americans

Danny JJ Wang, PhD, Professor of Neurology and Radiology, Director of Imaging Technology Innovation
We are expanding our suite of health disparities research with a new award to examine vascular causes of dementia in Asian Americans using neuroimaging.

Read the press release.

Fresh Funding

Leon Aksman

National Institute on Aging, R01

“Multilingualism as a factor of resilience to Alzheimer's disease and related dementias in India”

PRIYA RAJAGOPALAN

2023 Boerger Research Fund For Alzheimer’s Disease And Neurocognitive Disorders Grant Foundation Of The American Society Of Neuroradiology

“Assessing Brain Volumes And White Matter Microstructure In Alzheimer’s Disease In Relation To Astrocyte And Oligodendrocyte Based Genetic Subtypes”

DOMINIQUE DUNCAN

National Science Foundation Research Experiences for Undergraduates and Research Experiences for Teachers awards

Talia Nir

Alzheimer’s Association Research Grant

"Cortical dMRI microstructure as an early marker of AD pathology"

Jeiran Choupan

USC Research and Innovation 2023 Collaborative Research Planning Award

“Long Neuro-COVID-19"

And the Award Goes to...

Kseniia Kriukova

2023 American Epilepsy Society Fellow

Tyler Ard

3rd place, National Institutes of Health, The BRAIN Alliance Show Us Your BRAINs! Photo & Video Contest

"Memory Lanes"

Kirsten Lynch

Magna Cum Laude Merit Award, International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine (ISMRM)

"Alzheimer’s disease neuropathology contributes to perivascular and parenchymal free water diffusion characteristics"

Judy Shih

Neuroimage Clinical Editor's Choice Award

"Microstructural mapping of dentate gyrus pathology in Alzheimer's disease: A 16.4 Tesla MRI study"

Summer Learnin'

This summer, we hosted exemplary high school students from the Bovard Scholars program. USC established Bovard Scholars to empower outstanding high school students with financial needs to dream big. They receive resources to help prepare them for success in college, including gaining admission and scholarships to the best schools that are the ideal fit for their personal and professional needs. The Bovard Scholars had the opportunity to learn about the research we conduct here at the Stevens INI with presentations from select faculty. We also held a panel discussion with early career scientists where the scholars could ask questions about scientific careers.

NIIN

Our Master of Science in Neuroimaging and Informatics (NIIN) program welcomed a new class with orientation and boot camp!

Listen Up !

Cally Xiao was featured on the Dementia Matters podcast. She discussed one of our studies focusing on how different APOE alleles affect the risk for Alzheimer’s disease within Hispanic populations compared to non-Hispanic populations.

Want to GAAIN Access to Data?

The Global Alzheimer’s Association Interactive Network (GAAIN) unites a diverse and geographically distributed network of data partners within a federated data platform designed to foster cohort discovery, collaboration and sharing. We are thrilled to announce that IDEAS data is now available on the platform! The IDEAS Study is an observational, open-label, longitudinal cohort study designed to assess the impact of amyloid PET on patient-oriented outcomes in Medicare beneficiaries with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) or dementia of uncertain etiology. In total, 18,295 subjects 65 and older were enrolled into sub-groups: 1 progressive, unexplained MCI, and 2, dementia of uncertain cause. Access the data here.

Forming an Alliance

Our 7T Translational Alliance in North America (7T TANA) Kick-off Meeting was a huge success! The 7T TANA will facilitate the standardization of imaging protocols, the sharing of data and expertise, and the formation of multi-site trials for the discovery and evaluation of clinical values using 7T MRI. Learn more.

A WALK TO REMEMBER

Meredith Braskie led a team of our faculty, staff, students, and alumni in the 2023 Walk to End Alzheimer's Disease fundraiser and awareness event in Hermosa Beach. We had a great time for a good cause!

REHAB RESEARCHERS, ASSEMBLE!

Our Reproducible Rehabilitation (ReproRehab) research education program aims to build a sustainable national workforce of rehabilitation researchers equipped with basic data science skills in five years. The team held its first annual 2023 Reproducible Rehabilitation Research Summit, where participants could learn from presentations, network, and build community.

THE PERKS OF BEING AN ATTENDEE

This year, Director Arthur W. Toga attended the 7th BigBrain Workshop, which took place in Reykjavik, Iceland. Dr. Toga is Chair of the Scientific Advisory Board, and he made the most of his free time by taking some beautiful photos! Associate Director Paul M. Thompson was also in attendance and delivered the Sievers Lecture in Computational Neuroscience. Learn more.