Goran Papenberg has been granted funding of SEK 3 518 000 from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond for the project “The Role of DNA Methylation in Dopaminergic Neuromodulation of Cognitive Aging”, for the period 2021-2023.
Age-related cognitive impairments compromise the functional capacity of aging individuals, and create major individual and societal costs. Therefore, understanding the mechanisms underlying cognitive aging is of great importance. This program of research will determine the role of DNA methylation as a mechanism of change underlying aging-related decline in DA and cognitive functioning.
Overall, the findings will contribute to a better understanding of individual cognitive and brain aging trajectories.
Researchers participating in the project:
Lars Bäckman, Alireza Salami, Nina Karalija (Umeå University)
More information about the project
Alireza Salami has been granted funding of SEK 5 913 000 from Riksbankens Jubileumsfond for the project “Can reduced dopamine availability and disrupted functional brain connectome serve as biomarkers for cognitive decline in aging?”, for the period 2021-2023.
As a part of our attempts to investigate the brain basis of cognitive decline, we started a large scale study, DyNAMiC, in which advanced multimodal brain mapping techniques were used to provide unique insights into neurocognitive mechanisms of healthy aging. One possible brain-based measure underlying cognitive decline is functional connectivity (i.e. synchronicity between distal brain regions), which represents the functional architecture of complex neural systems, collectively constituting the human brain connectome.
The overall goal of DyNAMiC is to advance our understanding of the mechanisms underlying the effects of resting-state (but also task-related) functional connectivity on human cognition, and to elucidate the relationship between aberrant functional connectivity in the brain connectome and cognitive decline in normal aging.
Researchers participating in the project:
Lars Bäckman, Jarkko Johansson, Kristin Nordin, Grégoria Kalpouzos, Goran Papenberg