MarkVCID Consortium Overview
MarkVCID’s seven research sites and coordinating center are funded by grants from the National Institute of Neurological Disorders & Stroke (NINDS) and National Institute on Aging (NIA), and the BrightFocus Foundation.
The 5-year mission of the research sites is to analyze and optimize candidate VCID biomarkers (years 1-2) and participate in a consortium-wide program of biomarker scaling-up, multi-site protocol implementation, and multi-site validation (years 3-5).
Meet the Team
Age-related cognitive impairment and dementia represent one of the greatest risks to public health both in the US and globally. Alzheimer’s disease is the commonest cause of cognitive impairment, but diseases of the brain’s blood vessels—particularly the network of small blood vessels that supply all parts of the brain—have also been shown to be major contributors. Many medical trials have been conducted to find ways to prevent cognitive impairment due to small vessel diseases, but have been hampered by the limited availability of “biomarkers” that identify which people should be treated, detect which disease pathways should be targeted, or indicate that a particular treatment is working.
NINDS, an External Advisory Committee, and interested non-governmental organizations provide ongoing advice and oversight to MarkVCID research projects.
MarkVCID collaborates with VCID biomarker investigators outside the Consortium.
Click here to view:
- Clinical/cognitive measure collection manuals
- Biospecimen collection Best Practices
- Imaging standard operating procedures
- Patient MRI protocols
- Phantom MRI protocols
- Imaging-based biomarker kit protocols
- Fluid-based biomarker kit protocols
The MarkVCID Steering Committee serves as the Consortium’s primary decision-making body consisting of the Principal Investigator (PI) from each site, the coordinating center PI, and NINDS scientific officers.
To help accomplish its mission, Steering oversees five subcommittees compromised of experts from research sites and the coordinating center who guide and recommend consortium procedures:
