NeuroKids is a research study conducted in collaboration with the Neuroscience Group of Antioquia (GNA) in Colombia. The study focuses on how brain and body development might differ in children and teens who are at risk for early-onset Alzheimer’s disease due to a hereditary gene mutation (PSEN1 E280A).

We’re working with about 200 children and adolescents, ages 7 to 16, from Colombian families who carry this genetic mutation. Each year, participants come in for visits where we look at many aspects of their development—including their thinking and memory skills, brain growth, hormone levels, and emotional and social health.

The study includes brain scans (MRI), saliva and blood tests, memory and thinking assessments, puberty and hormone evaluations, and interviews with both the children and their caregivers.

By following these young people over time, our goal is to learn how early changes linked to Alzheimer’s may show up long before any symptoms appear. This research could help us find ways to detect and possibly prevent the disease much earlier in life.