Developmental Projects
Water Resource

As we seek to understand and cure Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, we consider it among our highest priorities to support innovative, high impact research

Our Developmental Project Program provides investigator funds to test new ideas about the causes and treatment of dementias. We are committed to funding three $50,000 pilot projects per year, open to any investigators at the University of Michigan, Michigan State University, Wayne State University, and the Ann Arbor VA.

2024-2026 Developmental Projects
Kelly DuBois, Ph.D. Kelly DuBois, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Plasma Apoptotic Bodies as Novel Alzheimer’s Disease Biomarkers
portrait of Kyler Mulhauser, PhD Kyler Mulhauser, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Cannabis use and cognitive health in older adults: A beyond amyloid study
Tanav A. Popli Tanav Popli, MD
PROJECT TITLE: Speech/Language Impairments in Non-Aphasic Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration (FTLD) Syndromes: Potential Markers of Underlying Pathology and Clinical Progression
2023-2025 Developmental Projects
Courtney Polenick Courtney Polenick, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Daily Experiences and Well-Being in Co-Resident Adult Child Caregivers and Perceptions of Co-Residence Within Dementia Care Dyads
portrait of Joongkyu Park Joongkyu Park, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Dendritic translation in tau mouse models
Tongtong Li, PhD Tongtong Li, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Detection and Prediction of Mild Cognitive Impairment in Seniors with Memory Complaints

This award is co-funded by Michigan ADRC and Pepper Center.
2022-2024 Funded Developmental Projects
Gideon Rothschild headshot Gideon Rothschild, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: The Neurophysiological Mechanisms Linking Sleep Disturbances and Alzheimer’s disease
Norman Scheel, Dr rer nat (PhD), Dipl-Inf Norman Scheel, Dr. rer. nat. (Ph.D.), Dipl.-Inf.
PROJECT TITLE: Dimensional Complexity: a new marker for cognitive elasticity and MCI/AD progression
Arthur Zhou, PhD Weichen Zhou, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: Explore the functional impact of transposable elements in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias
Hala Darwish Hala Darwish, PhD
PROJECT TITLE: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial of A Comprehensive Cognitive and Affective Intervention for Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) (CoINTEGRATE- For Foreign-Born Arab Americans- a dyadic approach)