Browsing by Author "Raman, Rema"
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Item Alzheimer’s disease progression by geographical region in a clinical trial setting(BioMed Central, 2015-06-25) Henley, David B.; Dowsett, Sherie A.; Chen, Yun-Fei; Liu-Seifert, Hong; Grill, Joshua D.; Doody, Rachelle S.; Aisen, Paul; Raman, Rema; Miller, David S.; Hake, Ann M.; Cummings, Jeffrey; Department of Medicine, IU School of MedicineINTRODUCTION: To facilitate enrollment and meet local registration requirements, sponsors have increasingly implemented multi-national Alzheimer's disease (AD) studies. Geographic regions vary on many dimensions that may affect disease progression or its measurement. To aid researchers designing and implementing Phase 3 AD trials, we assessed disease progression across geographic regions using placebo data from four large, multi-national clinical trials of investigational compounds developed to target AD pathophysiology. METHODS: Four similarly-designed 76 to 80 week, randomized, double-blind placebo-controlled trials with nearly identical entry criteria enrolled patients aged ≥55 years with mild or moderate NINCDS/ADRDA probable AD. Descriptive analyses were performed for observed mean score and observed mean change in score from baseline at each scheduled visit. Data included in the analyses were pooled from the intent-to-treat placebo-assigned overall (mild and moderate) AD dementia populations from all four studies. Disease progression was assessed as change from baseline for each of 5 scales - the AD Assessment Scale-cognitive subscale (ADAS-cog11), the AD Cooperative Study- Activities of Daily Living Scale (ADCS-ADL), Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), the Clinical Dementia Rating scored by the sum of boxes method (CDR-SB), and the Neuropsychiatric Inventory (NPI). RESULTS: Regions were heterogeneous at baseline. At baseline, disease severity as measured by ADAS-cog11, ADCS-ADL, and CDR-SB was numerically worse for Eastern Europe/Russia compared with other regions. Of all regional populations, Eastern Europe/Russia showed the greatest cognitive and functional decline from baseline; Japan, Asia and/or S. America/Mexico showed the least cognitive and functional decline. CONCLUSIONS: These data suggest that in multi-national clinical trials, AD progression or its measurement may differ across geographic regions; this may be in part due to heterogeneity across populations at baseline. The observed differences in AD progression between outcome measures across geographic regions may generalize to 'real-world' clinic populations, where heterogeneity is the norm.Item Alzheimer’s disease research progress in the Mediterranean region: the Alzheimer’s Association International Conference Satellite Symposium(Wiley, 2022) Sexton, Claire; Solis, Michele; Aharon-Peretz, Judith; Alexopoulos, Panagiotis; Apostolova, Liana; Bayen, Eléonore; Birkenhager, Betty; Cappa, Stefano; Constantinidou, Fofi; Fortea, Juan; Gerritsen, Debby L.; Hassanin, Hany I.; Ibanez, Agustin; Ioannidis, Panagiotis; Karageorgiou, Elissaios; Korczyn, Amos; Leroi, Iracema; Lichtwarck, Bjorn; Logroscino, Giancarlo; Lynch, Chris; Mecocci, Patrizia; Molinuevo, Jose Luis; Papatriantafyllou, John; Papegeorgiou, Sokratis; Politis, Antonis; Raman, Rema; Ritchie, Karen; Sanchez-Juan, Pascual; Sano, Mary; Scarmeas, Nikolas; Spiru, Luiza; Stathi, Afroditi; Tsolaki, Magda; Yener, Görsev; Zaganas, Ioannis; Zygouris, Stelios; Carrillo, Maria; Neurology, School of MedicineAs research and services in the Mediterranean region continue to increase, so do opportunities for global collaboration. To support such collaborations, the Alzheimer's Association was due to hold its seventh Alzheimer's Association International Conference Satellite Symposium in Athens, Greece in 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the meeting was held virtually, which enabled attendees from around the world to hear about research efforts in Greece and the surrounding Mediterranean countries. Research updates spanned understanding the biology of, treatments for, and care of people with Alzheimer's disease (AD_ and other dementias. Researchers in the Mediterranean region have outlined the local epidemiology of AD and dementia, and have identified regional populations that may expedite genetic studies. Development of biomarkers is expected to aid early and accurate diagnosis. Numerous efforts have been made to develop culturally specific interventions to both reduce risk of dementia, and to improve quality of life for people living with dementia.Item Effect of head impacts on diffusivity measures in a cohort of collegiate contact sport athletes(American Academy of Neurology, 2014-01-07) McAllister, Thomas W.; Ford, James C.; Flashman, Laura A.; Maerlender, Arthur; Greenwald, Richard M.; Beckwith, Jonathan G.; Bolander, Richard P.; Tosteson, Tor D.; Turco, John H.; Raman, Rema; Jain, Sonia; Department of Psychiatry, IU School of MedicineOBJECTIVE: To determine whether exposure to repetitive head impacts over a single season affects white matter diffusion measures in collegiate contact sport athletes. METHODS: A prospective cohort study at a Division I NCAA athletic program of 80 nonconcussed varsity football and ice hockey players who wore instrumented helmets that recorded the acceleration-time history of the head following impact, and 79 non-contact sport athletes. Assessment occurred preseason and shortly after the season with diffusion tensor imaging and neurocognitive measures. RESULTS: There was a significant (p = 0.011) athlete-group difference for mean diffusivity (MD) in the corpus callosum. Postseason fractional anisotropy (FA) differed (p = 0.001) in the amygdala (0.238 vs 0.233). Measures of head impact exposure correlated with white matter diffusivity measures in several brain regions, including the corpus callosum, amygdala, cerebellar white matter, hippocampus, and thalamus. The magnitude of change in corpus callosum MD postseason was associated with poorer performance on a measure of verbal learning and memory. CONCLUSION: This study suggests a relationship between head impact exposure, white matter diffusion measures, and cognition over the course of a single season, even in the absence of diagnosed concussion, in a cohort of college athletes. Further work is needed to assess whether such effects are short term or persistent.Item Findings of Efficacy, Safety, and Biomarker Outcomes of Atabecestat in Preclinical Alzheimer Disease: A Truncated Randomized Phase 2b/3 Clinical Trial(American Medical Association, 2021) Sperling, Reisa; Henley, David; Aisen, Paul S.; Raman, Rema; Donohue, Michael C.; Ernstrom, Karin; Rafii, Michael S.; Streffer, Johannes; Shi, Yingqi; Karcher, Keith; Raghavan, Nandini; Tymofyeyev, Yevgen; Bogert, Jennifer; Brashear, H. Robert; Novak, Gerald; Thipphawong, John; Saad, Ziad S.; Kolb, Hartmuth; Rofael, Hany; Sanga, Panna; Romano, Gary; Psychiatry, School of MedicineImportance: Atabecestat, a nonselective oral β-secretase inhibitor, was evaluated in the EARLY trial for slowing cognitive decline in participants with preclinical Alzheimer disease. Preliminary analyses suggested dose-related cognitive worsening and neuropsychiatric adverse events (AEs). Objective: To report efficacy, safety, and biomarker findings in the EARLY trial, both on and off atabecestat treatment, with focus on potential recovery of effects on cognition and behavior. Design, setting, and participants: Randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, phase 2b/3 study conducted from November 2015 to December 2018 after being stopped prematurely. The study was conducted at 143 centers across 14 countries. Participants were permitted to be followed off-treatment by the original protocol, collecting safety and efficacy data. From 4464 screened participants, 557 amyloid-positive, cognitively normal (Clinical Dementia Rating of 0; aged 60-85 years) participants (approximately 34% of originally planned 1650) were randomized before the trial sponsor stopped enrollment. Interventions: Participants were randomized (1:1:1) to atabecestat, 5 mg (n = 189), 25 mg (n = 183), or placebo (n = 185). Main outcomes and measures: Primary outcome: change from baseline in Preclinical Alzheimer Cognitive Composite score. Secondary outcomes: change from baseline in the Cognitive Function Index and the Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status total scale score. Safety was monitored throughout the study. Results: Of 557 participants, 341 were women (61.2%); mean (SD) age was 70.4 (5.56) years. In May 2018, study medication was stopped early owing to hepatic-related AEs; participants were followed up off-treatment for 6 months. Atabecestat, 25 mg, showed significant cognitive worsening vs placebo for Preclinical Alzheimer Cognitive Composite at month 6 (least-square mean difference, -1.09; 95% CI, -1.66 to -0.53; P < .001) and month 12 (least-square mean, -1.62; 95% CI, -2.49 to -0.76; P < .001), and at month 3 for Repeatable Battery for the Assessment of Neuropsychological Status (least-square mean, -3.70; 95% CI, -5.76 to -1.63; P < .001). Cognitive Function Index participant report showed nonsignificant worsening at month 12. Systemic and neuropsychiatric-related treatment-emergent AEs were greater in atabecestat groups vs placebo. After stopping treatment, follow-up cognitive testing and AE assessment provided evidence of reversibility of drug-induced cognitive worsening and AEs in atabecestat groups. Conclusions and relevance: Atabecestat treatment was associated with dose-related cognitive worsening as early as 3 months and presence of neuropsychiatric treatment-emergent AEs, with evidence of reversibility after 6 months off treatment.Item The Impact of Amyloid Burden and APOE on Rates of Cognitive Impairment in Late Life Depression(IOS Press, 2021) Rhodes, Emma; Insel, Philip S.; Butters, Meryl A.; Morin, Ruth; Bickford, David; Tosun, Duygu; Gessert, Devon; Rosen, Howie J.; Aisen, Paul; Raman, Rema; Landau, Susan; Saykin, Andrew; Toga, Arthur; Jack, Clifford R.; Weiner, Michael W.; Nelson, Craig; Mackin, R. Scott; Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative; ADNI Depression Project; Radiology and Imaging Sciences, School of MedicineBackground: Cognitive impairment (CI) is a key feature of late life depression (LLD), but the contribution of underlying neurodegenerative pathology remains unclear. Objective: To evaluate cognitive dysfunction in LLD relative to a sample of nondepressed (ND) older adults with matched levels of memory impairment and amyloid-β (Aβ) burden. Methods: Participants included 120 LLD and 240 ND older adults matched on age, education, sex, Mini-Mental State Exam, mild cognitive impairment diagnosis, and PET Aβ burden. Results: LLD showed higher rates of impairment relative to ND with 54.6% of the LLD sample demonstrating impairment in at least one cognitive domain compared to 42.9% of controls (H = 7.13, p = 0.008). LLD had poorer performance and higher rates of impairment on Rey Auditory Verbal Learning Test learning and memory compared to controls. In the overall sample, Aβ positivity was associated with worse performance on Logical Memory I (p = 0.044), Logical Memory II (p = 0.011), and Trail Making Test -B (p = 0.032), and APOEɛ4 genotype was associated with worse performance on Logical Memory I (p = 0.022); these relationships did not differ between LLD and ND. Conclusion: LLD showed higher rates of CI driven by focal deficits in verbal learning and memory. Alzheimer's disease (AD) biomarkers were associated with worse performance on timed set-shifting and story learning and memory, and these relationships were not impacted by depression status. These findings suggest that AD may account for a portion of previously reported multi-domain CI in LLD and highlight the potential for AD to confound studies of cognition in LLD.Item Late Life Depression is Associated with Reduced Cortical Amyloid Burden: Findings from the ADNI Depression Project(Elsevier, 2021) Mackin, R. Scott; Insel, Philip S.; Landau, Susan; Bickford, David; Morin, Ruth; Rhodes, Emma; Tosun, Duygu; Rosen, Howie J.; Butters, Meryl; Aisen, Paul; Raman, Rema; Saykin, Andrew; Toga, Arthur; Jack, Clifford, Jr.; Koeppe, Robert; Weiner, Michael W.; Nelson, Craig; Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative & the ADNI Depression Project; Radiology and Imaging Sciences, School of MedicineBackground: We evaluated the role of cortical amyloid deposition as a factor contributing to memory dysfunction and increased risk of dementia associated with late-life depression (LLD). Methods: A total of 119 older adult participants with a current diagnosis of major depression (LLD) from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) Depression Project study and 119 nondepressed (ND) cognitively unimpaired participants matched on age, sex, and APOE genotype were obtained from the ADNI database. Results: Thirty-three percent of LLD participants met ADNI criteria for mild cognitive impairment. Compared with ND individuals, the LLD group exhibited less global amyloid beta (Aβ) accumulation (p = .05). The proportion of amyloid positivity in the LLD group was 19.3% compared with 31.1% for the ND participants (p = .02). Among LLD participants, global Aβ was not associated with lifetime number of depressive episodes, lifetime length of depression, length of lifetime selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor use, or lifetime length of untreated depression (p > .21 for all). Global Aβ was associated with worse memory performance (p = .05). Similar results were found in secondary analyses restricting comparisons to the cognitively unimpaired LLD participants as well as when comparing the LLD group with an ND group that included participants with mild cognitive impairment. Conclusions: Contrary to expectation, the LLD group showed less Aβ deposition than the ND group and Aβ deposition was not associated with depression history characteristics. Aβ was associated with memory, but this relationship did not differ between LLD and ND. Our results suggest that memory deficits and accelerated cognitive decline reported in previous studies of LLD are not due to greater cortical Aβ accumulation.Item Peripheral and central effects of γ-secretase inhibition by semagacestat in Alzheimer's disease(BioMed Central, 2015-06-10) Doody, Rachelle S.; Raman, Rema; Sperling, Reisa A.; Seimers, Eric; Sethuraman, Gopalan; Mohs, Richard; Farlow, Martin R.; Iwatsubo, Takeshi; Vellas, Bruno; Sun, Xiaoying; Ernstrom, Karin; Thomas, Ronald G.; Aisen, Paul S.; Department of Neurology, IU School of MedicineINTRODUCTION: The negative efficacy study examining the γ-secretase inhibitor semagacestat in mild to moderate Alzheimer's disease (AD) included a number of biomarkers of the disease as well as safety outcomes. We analyzed these data to explore relationships between drug exposure and pharmacodynamic effects and to examine the correlations among outcome measures. METHODS: The study was a multicenter, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of two dose regimens of semagacestat and a placebo administered for 18 months to individuals with mild to moderate AD. Changes in measures of central and peripheral drug activity were compared between the three treatment groups using one-way analysis of variance. The relationship between changes in each of the outcome measures and measures of drug exposure and peripheral pharmacodynamic effect were assessed using Spearman's correlation coefficient. RESULTS: Assignment to the active treatment arms was associated with reduction in plasma amyloid-β (Aβ) peptides, increase in ventricular volume, decrease in cerebrospinal fluid phosphorylated tau (p-tau) and several other laboratory measures and adverse event categories. Within the active arms, exposure to drug, as indicated by area under the concentration curve (AUC) of blood concentration, was associated with reduction in plasma Aβ peptides and a subset of laboratory changes and adverse event rates. Ventricular volume increase, right hippocampal volume loss and gastrointestinal symptoms were related to change in plasma Aβ peptide but not AUC, supporting a link to inhibition of γ-secretase cleavage of the amyloid precursor protein. Cognitive decline correlated with ventricular expansion and reduction in p-tau. CONCLUSION: These findings may inform future studies of drugs targeting secretases involved in Aβ generation.Item Randomized Placebo-Controlled Trial of Methylphenidate or Galantamine for Persistent Emotional and Cognitive Symptoms Associated with PTSD and/or Traumatic Brain Injury(Nature Publishing Group, 2016-04) McAllister, Thomas W.; Zafonte, Ross; Jain, Sonia; Flashman, Laura A.; George, Mark S.; Grant, Gerald A.; He, Feng; Lohr, James B.; Andaluz, Norberto; Summerall, Lanier; Paulus, Martin P.; Raman, Rema; Stein, Murray B.; Department of Psychiatry, School of MedicineWe report findings from a 12-week randomized double-blinded placebo-controlled trial of methylphenidate or galantamine to treat emotional and cognitive complaints in individuals (n=32) with a history of PTSD, TBI, or both conditions. In this small pilot study, methylphenidate treatment was associated with clinically meaningful and statistically significant improvement compared with placebo on the primary outcome, a measure of cognitive complaints (Ruff Neurobehavioral Inventory-Postmorbid Cognitive Scale), as well as on the secondary outcomes reflecting post-concussive (Rivermead Post Concussive Symptom Questionnaire) and post-traumatic stress symptoms (Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Checklist). Treatment was well tolerated. These results suggest the need for a larger RCT to replicate and confirm these findings. Design considerations for such a trial should include the need for multiple sites to facilitate adequate recruitment and extension of the treatment and follow-up periods.Item Relationship of Hoarding and Depression Symptoms in Older Adults(Elsevier, 2024) Nutley, Sara; Nguyen, Binh K.; Mackin, R. Scott; Insel, Philip S.; Tosun, Duygu; Butters, Meryl; Aisen, Paul; Raman, Rema; Saykin, Andrew J.; Toga, Arthur W.; Jack, Clifford; Weiner, Michael W.; Nelson, Craig; Kassel, Michelle; Kryza-Lacombe, Maria; Eichenbaum, Joseph; Nosheny, Rachel L.; Mathews, Carol A.; Radiology and Imaging Sciences, School of MedicineHoarding disorder (HD) is a debilitating neuropsychiatric condition that affects 2%-6% of the population and increases in incidence with age. Major depressive disorder (MDD) co-occurs with HD in approximately 50% of cases and leads to increased functional impairment and disability. However, only one study to date has examined the rate and trajectory of hoarding symptoms in older individuals with a lifetime history of MDD, including those with current active depression (late-life depression; LLD). We therefore sought to characterize this potentially distinct phenotype. We determined the incidence of HD in two separate cohorts of participants with LLD (n = 73) or lifetime history of MDD (n = 580) and examined the reliability and stability of hoarding symptoms using the Saving Inventory-Revised (SI-R) and Hoarding Rating Scale-Self Report (HRS), as well as the co-variance of hoarding and depression scores over time. HD was present in 12% to 33% of participants with MDD, with higher rates found in those with active depressive symptoms. Hoarding severity was stable across timepoints in both samples (all correlations >0.75), and fewer than 30% of participants in each sample experienced significant changes in severity between any two timepoints. Change in depression symptoms over time did not co-vary with change in hoarding symptoms. These findings indicate that hoarding is a more common comorbidity in LLD than previously suggested, and should be considered in screening and management of LLD. Future studies should further characterize the interaction of these conditions and their impact on outcomes, particularly functional impairment in this vulnerable population.