June 22, 9:00am - 8:15pm
Paul Robeson Campus Center
350 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd
Although African Americans have double the prevalence of Alzheimer’s disease as compared to white Americans, we do not sufficiently understand the causes of this health disparity, nor how to best focus future interventional efforts to remediate this health crisis. This conference will present the latest data on biological, behavioral, social, and environmental influences on individual differences in aging, brain health, and Alzheimer’s disease in older African Americans – bridging correlational, longitudinal, and interventional methodologies. We seek to promote cross-disciplinary collaboration and communication among researchers, support trainees and early career investigators, and establish wider scientific, clinical, and public awareness of the need to reduce the risk of Alzheimer´s disease in African Americans.
Program and Speakers
9:00am-9:45am: Registration and Coffee
9:45am-10:00am: Opening Remarks
SESSION 1: EPIDEMIOLOGY
- 10:00am-10:20am: Adesola Ogunniyi (Ibadan University, Nigeria). “Comparing Alzheimer’s risk in African Americans and the Yoruba People of Nigeria”
- 10:20am-10:40am: Joyce Balls-Berry (Washington University St. Louis, MO). “Examining African Americans risk factors and susceptibility for Alzheimer’s disease.”
- 10:40am-11:00am: Carey Gleason (Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, University of Wisconsin, WI). “Incident dementia in non-Hispanic African Americans and whites with mild cognitive impairment.”
- 11:00am-11:30am: Chocolate Break
SESSION 2: GENETICS AND BIOMARKERS
- 11:30am-11:50am: Goldie Byrd (Wake Forest, NC). “Genetic susceptibility of Alzheimer’s disease in African Americans.”
- 11:50am-12:10am: William Hu (Rutgers University-RBHS, NJ). “CSF and imaging biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease in African Americans.”
12:15pm-1:30pm: Lunch
SESSION 3: FITNESS AND PREVENTION
- 1:30pm-1:40pm: Thomas Obisesan (Howard University, Washington, D.C.). “Alzheimer’s dementia in African Americans: Role of cardiovascular disease risk and opportunities for prevention.”
- 1:40pm-2:10pm: Robert Newton (Pennington Biomedical Research Center, LA). “The effect of a physical activity promotion program on cognitive function in older African American adults.”
- 2:10pm-2:30pm: Mark Gluck (Rutgers University-Newark, NJ). “Interactions between physical fitness and genetics on behavioral and biological markers of Alzheimer’s risk in older African Americans.”
- 2:30pm-3:00pm: Coffee and/or Cardio Exercise Break
SESSION 4 – PANEL DISCUSSION: PHARMACEUTICAL INDUSTRY PERSPECTIVES ON EXPANDING AFRICAN AMERICAN ENROLLMENT IN CLINICAL TRIALS
- 3:00pm-3:40pm: (Chair, Michelle Papka, The Cognitive and Research Center of New Jersey). Speakers from Eisai Inc., Eli Lilly & Company, Genentech.
SESSION 5: FUTURE DIRECTIONS AND PRIORITIES
- 3:40pm-4:00pm: Carl Hill (Alzheimer’s Association). “Diversity and health disparities in Alzheimer’s research”
- 4:00pm-4:20pm: Damali Martin (National Institute on Aging, NIH). “Moving towards precision public health and precision medicine for minority health and health disparities research.”
- 4:20pm-4:45pm: General Discussion/Q&A
- 4:45pm-6:00pm: Reception and Poster Session
6:00pm-6:15pm: Gospel Concert
6:15pm-8:00pm: Dinner
8:00pm-8:15pm: Grande Finale: Silver Stepper Dancers from East Orange Senior Center
Conference website and more information
Register to attend (cost to attend is $150)