The Asian Cohort for Alzheimer’s Disease (ACAD) study

Abstract

AbstractBackgroundAsian Americans and Asian Canadians (ASACs) are the fastest growing minority group in the US and Canada. Roughly 21% of ASACs will be 65 years or older by 2060, underscoring the importance to understand how dementia and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) affect these large sectors of the populace. By comparison, ASACs are under‐sampled in AD research. Culturally appropriate, community‐based approaches to recruit these understudied communities are urgently needed.MethodThe Asian Cohort for Alzheimer’s Disease (ACAD) will be the first large dementia genetics cohort to examine genetic/non‐genetic risk factors for AD among ASACs. Our clinical and community‐based participatory research (CPBR) scientists have a long collaborative history, experience and leadership in AD research. The National Institute on Aging (NIA) has resourced our study, which will leverage national AD research resources and facilitate collaborations with international cohorts.ResultACAD consists of 8 recruiting sites (6 US and 2 Canada), a coordinating site, an analysis site, and 4 active workgroups. ACAD has developed a data collection packet (DCP) and pre‐screening/sample collection procedures. The Data Management Workgroup has implemented them into a central REDCap database. The Outreach Workgroup has translated the forms and are conducting an outreach campaign into Chinese (Mandarin and Cantonese), Vietnamese and Korean. The Training Workgroup has developed a training curriculum for the administration of the DCP and for culturally appropriate approaches to recruitment. We will recruit cases of dementia, mild cognitive impairment, subjective cognitive complaint, and controls without cognitive impairment in collaboration with community partners, clinics, and nursing homes that serve Asian communities. We will collect saliva or blood for DNA/genetics and biomarker studies.ConclusionAfter launching ACAD in November 2020, we built foundation materials to initiate recruitment in Spring 2021. ACAD will provide guidance for future studies to explore ASAC risk factors for AD and related dementias. In collaboration with ongoing consortium efforts in Alzheimer’s Disease Genetics Consortium, trans‐ethnic insights from ACAD may identify potential novel, population‐specific therapeutic pathways for AD. Our long‐term goal will be to extend ACAD to South Asians, Filipinos, and Japanese.