Indiana University School of Medicine leads a comprehensive program in Alzheimer's disease research spanning basic, translational and clinical research, focused on optimizing clinical care for patients with Alzheimer's disease. The school, ranked No. 6 in the nation for National Institute of Aging research, received $87 million in National Institutes of Health grants to fund Alzheimer's disease research. From developing the next generation of animal models and testing potential therapeutics to working alongside clinical research participants and patients in the state's largest health system, IU School of Medicine has a rich research program and expertise widely recognized around the world.
Basic and Preclinical Science
Basic scientists research the neurobiology and molecular genetics of Alzheimer’s disease to define disease mechanisms using animal models, identify therapeutic targets, rigorously test drugs and create molecules for potential drugs.
Clinical and Translational Science
Researchers in clinical and translational science test new methods to diagnose, treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease, and advancing this research into improved diagnosis and care for patients living with the disease.
Clinical Innovation
Researchers in clinical and translational science test new methods to diagnose, treat and prevent Alzheimer’s disease, and advancing this research into improved diagnosis and care for patients living with the disease.
Featured News
Over the past year-and-a-half, more than 100 people have received new disease-modifying drugs for Alzheimer’s disease at the Indiana University Health Neuroscience Center in downtown Indianapolis, and that number grows weekly. Not only are the patients among the first people in the country to receive the treatment, but they’re contributing to the work of researchers from the IU School of Medicine who are actively studying the long-term effects of the drugs.
April 24, 2025
Dr. Taeho Jo, a recent Research Education Component Core Scholar from the Indiana Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, is working to find out how AI can better help us find care for those with Alzheimer's Disease.
April 18, 2025
Symposium invites community, scientific leaders to better understand brain health, neurodegeneration
The IU School of Medicine will highlight its robust neuroscience research program April 13 and 14 at the inaugural Center for Neurodegenerative Disorders Symposium.
March 26, 2025
Researchers identify potential link between retinal changes, Alzheimer’s disease
A team of scientists at the Indiana University School of Medicine has identified that an eye condition affecting the retina, the light-sensing tissue in the back of the eye, may serve as an early indicator for Alzheimer's disease.February 26, 2025
Fowler named Vice Chair for Research
Nicole Fowler, PhD, MHSA, is the Department of Medicine’s new Vice Chair for Research. She stepped into the role on Jan. 1, 2025, replacing Kara Wools-Kaloustian, MD, who has taken on the post of Executive Site Director for AMPATH Kenya.January 15, 2025
Indiana University in collaboration with Seoul National University sheds light on the importance of ethnic diversity in Alzheimer's disease (AD) research with three recent publications using data in a Korean population from the Korean Brain Aging Study for the Early Diagnosis and Prediction of Alzheimer's Disease (KBASE) study.
January 06, 2025
Malú Tansey, PhD and her team of researchers like to think “outside the brain.” Her lab investigates the role of inflammation and immune system responses on brain health and the development of neurodegenerative diseases, such as Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease and frontal temporal dementia, with a specific focus on the gut-brain connection.
October 21, 2024
Newly discovered genetic marker could pave the way for future Alzheimer's disease therapeutics
Researchers have identified a new genetic marker that could play a role in the development of Alzheimer's disease and pave the way for novel therapeutic targets and diagnostic tools for the disease.
October 08, 2024
Key mechanisms in asymptomatic Alzheimer’s disease brains may protect against cognitive decline
IU School of Medicine researchers have uncovered key mechanisms that may protect against cognitive decline in Alzheimer's disease by studying the brains of people who, despite having two of the hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease postmortem, experienced no diagnosable dementia symptoms while they were living.
September 24, 2024
Two new papers published in Alzheimer's & Dementia demonstrate that evaluating microRNAs in blood can be used not only to diagnose mild cognitive impairment (MCI) but also, critically, to predict the conversion from MCI to dementia due to Alzheimer's disease.
September 18, 2024
Anationalresource for Alzheimer’s disease animal models and preclinical testing of therapeutics, led in part by Indiana University School of Medicine researchers, is the focus of a special issue of Alzheimer’s & Dementia, the journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.
August 28, 2024
$3.5 million grant to fund study of connection between Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury
Researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine and the University of California, Riverside are investigating how traumatic brain injuries and genetic risk factors can accelerate the development of Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, which, according to the Alzheimer’s Association, nearly 6.9 million Americans 65 and older have.
August 22, 2024