The Center for Autism and Developmental Disorders and the Center for Excellence in Autism Research at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center are conducting a study called “Neurodegeneration in Aging Down Syndrome.” They are recruiting adults with Down Syndrome (25 years and older) to participate, with the aim to identify biomarkers for Alzheimer’s Disease with the hopes of being able to tell who is most at risk for developing the disease later in life. The long-term goal would be to identify who is most at risk and test intervention(s) to either lessen the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease or prevent them altogether.

To learn more about the condition we are asking participants to come for 4 visits, which are 16 months apart. Each visit is 1-2 days and involves both cognitive testing/caregiver report and scanning of the brain. The scans we do include both MRIs and PET scans. We also draw blood samples to look at genetics, fats, and proteins in the blood and to see how these change over time. All participants are compensated for their time (each procedure attempted), and will be reimbursed for mileage and parking, provided a stipend for meals, and will be paid for a hotel since it would be a distance to Pittsburgh.