MIRAGE -
Multi-Institutional
Research in Alzheimer's genetic Epidemiology - is a
family study funded by the National Institute on
Aging (NIA) research project based at Boston
University School of Medicine. The goal of Mirage
is to evaluate the association between genetic and
non-genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease.
Genes are responsible
for a person's hereditary health risks. Recently,
it was discoved that there is a genetic risk factor
for Alzheimer's disease. This means that people who
have a relative with Alzheimer's disease may have a
greater chance of having AD than someone who does
not have a relative with the disease. The Mirage
study will evaluate the association between genetic
and nongenetic risk factors for AD based on data
collected from Caucasian and African American
families.
At Case Western we
have a focus on African American families. Since
little is known about AD in African-American
families, a particular feature in this project is to
determine risk factors in AA that are similar or
different from those of Caucasians families. This
research will help assure that AA benefit form
scientic progress in new developments in diagnosis
and treatments.
Who's Eligible to participate: Your family
is eligible to participate if they meet the
following criteria:
- A living family member who has been diagnosed with
Alzheimer's disease.
- The family member with AD has a living brother or
sister (full sibling) who is willing to participate
in the study.
- Eligible family members will be asked to complete
a family medical history questonnaire.
- Patient and sibling will be asked to donate a
small sample of blood, and MRI at the study's
expense.
Participating Centers:
Case Western Reserve University School
of Medicine (Cleveland, Ohio)
Boston University School of Medicine ( Boston, MA)
Cornell Medical University (NY,NY)
Duke University Medical Center (Durham, NC)
Morehouse School of Medicine (Atlanta, GA)
Howard University School of Medicine ( Washington
DC)
Mt. Sinai Medical Center (Miami Beach, FL)
Pacific Health Research Institute (Honolulu, HI)
Rancho Los Amigos Medical Center (Downey, CA)
Rush-Presbyterian-St. Luke's Medical Center
(Chicago, IL)
Technische Universitaet Muenchen (Germany)
University of Alabama (Birmingham, AL)
University of British Columbia (Canada)
University of California, Davis (Sacramento, CA)
Website Address for
Boston University Alzheimer's Disease Center:
www.bu.edu/alzresearch/mirage
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