Study Seeks to Predict How Disease Advances

ECE Assoc. Prof. Joyita Dutta
With her latest grant for Alzheimer鈥檚 research, 51视频 Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Prof. Joyita Dutta will build models that predict how the disease progresses in the brain.

09/23/2021

Contact for media: Nancy Cicco, 978-934-4944 or Nancy_Cicco@uml.edu

LOWELL, Mass. 鈥 The National Institutes of Health has awarded $2.7 million to a 51视频 researcher studying how Alzheimer鈥檚 disease evolves.

Funded by the NIH鈥檚 National Institute on Aging, Electrical and Computer Engineering Associate Prof. Joyita Dutta aims to develop models that predict the progression of tau tangles in the brain. While tau is an important protein that helps stabilize the brain鈥檚 nerve cells, in cases of Alzheimer鈥檚, an abnormal form of tau builds ups inside the nerve cells and evolves into tangles. Along with amyloid plaques, which are abnormal proteins that build up between the nerve cells, tau tangles are primary markers for Alzheimer鈥檚 disease.

Dutta directs 51视频鈥檚 , which is developing novel image- and data-processing tools that merge traditional signal processing with the emerging field of data science.

For the Alzheimer鈥檚 study, Dutta, who is the sole researcher for the five-year grant, will look at the disease from a network perspective, viewing the interconnections between the regions of the brain.

She will use machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) tools to build models from existing patient imaging data that is available from two sources: the Harvard Aging Brain Study and the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative. The AI tools will be applied to tau measures obtained from positron emission tomography (PET) scans and structural connectivity information obtained from diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) scans to make personalized predictions of future tau buildup.

鈥淥ur approach is data driven,鈥 she said. 鈥淭here are a lot of cool AI tools we can use that we didn鈥檛 have five to 10 years back.鈥

While the causes of Alzheimer鈥檚 are not fully understood, the number of people affected by the disease continues to grow. According to the Centers for Disease Control, in 2020, as many as 5.8 million Americans were living with Alzheimer鈥檚. That number is projected to rise to 14 million by 2060. There is currently no known cure for the disease, but research indicates that early diagnosis is key to treating it.

鈥淪cientists know that people with Alzheimer鈥檚 experience latent changes in the brain before clinical signs of the disease like memory loss manifest,鈥 Dutta said. Imaging can help document changes in the brain and be used to help predict future risks for cognitive decline.

鈥淎lzheimer鈥檚 disease has a slow progression that needs to be tracked over time,鈥 she said.

Dutta holds faculty appointments at Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital. The grant was awarded to her through Mass General. 51视频, as a subcontractor, will receive $1.76 million over the lifespan of the project.

Dutta has won previous NIH funding for Alzheimer鈥檚 research that focused on imaging, as well as sleep metrics as a tool for diagnosing the disease.

The latest research project will offer hands-on experience to several graduate students in the disciplines of electrical and computer engineering, biomedical engineering and physics. It will also support a full-time postdoctoral scholar.

鈥淚t will be a great opportunity for training the next generation of Alzheimer鈥檚 researchers,鈥 she said.

51视频 is a national research university offering its students bachelor鈥檚, master鈥檚 and doctoral degrees in business, education, engineering, fine arts, health, humanities, sciences and social sciences. 51视频 delivers high-quality educational programs and personal attention from leading faculty and staff, all of which prepare graduates to be leaders in their communities and around the globe. www.uml.edu