News Release

UNC Institute on Aging Announces Winners of the Bringing Basic Scientists to Aging Grants Program

May 12, 2009

Awards in the form of pilot grants for interdisciplinary team building and research grant development in aging have been given to two researchers at the UNC Institute on Aging, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Funding for this grant program was provided, in large part, by The UNC-CH Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Economic Development.

The aim of the Bringing Basic Scientists to aging program is to build greater strength in multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary aging research by investing in IOA current research scientists to develop projects which include a basic science component. There is currently great interest, among federal funders and the foundations that fund aging research, in research that brings together a broad spectrum of disciplines. This spectrum ranges from fields as diverse as biology and nanotechnology to sociology, clinical sciences, and philosophy. Employing a strategy that focuses specifically on collaboration with basic scientists will enhance our capacity at the Institute on Aging (IOA) to conduct transdisciplinary research from bench to bedside to community and beyond.

During the one year funding period, grantees will be expected to use the award to build an interdisciplinary team and to develop a research proposal in aging.

The two funded pilot projects and interdisciplinary teams include:

Testing the Effectiveness of Using the Nintendo Wii for Balance Interventions in Older Adults
Falls are considered a sentinel health event in the life of an older adult, resulting in increased morbidity, mortality, and decreased quality of life. Nationally, at least 30% of community dwelling older adults over the age of 65 will fall this year, resulting in approximately 1.8 million emergency room visits, 460,000 hospitalizations, and 13,600 deaths. The purpose of this project is to determine if the Nintendo Wii and Wii Fit can be utilized as effective interventions to improve balance. The project will consist of two phases. The first phase will focus on modifying the software and hardware of the Wii to improve accessibility and safety for older adult users and to develop a series of balance games an older adult can play. The second phase will determine the effectiveness of an exercise-based balance intervention using the Wii Fit on physical and cognitive outcomes. A follow-on objective of this project is to explore the possibility of using the Wii technology to remotely screen older adults for balance impairments to determine if they are eligible and appropriate for an exercise-based balance class or would benefit from a physical therapy intervention. This project is creates a collaborative interdisciplinary team drawing together physical therapy, computer science, occupational therapy and information science.

Principal Investigator: Tiffany Shubert, PhD, MPT, Research Scientist, UNC Institute on Aging.
Co-Investigators: Gary Bishop, PhD, Professor, UNC Department of Computer Science; Leslie Vaughn, PhD, OTR/L, Assistant Professor of Occupational Therapy, University of Wisconsin-Madison; Joanne Marshall, PhD, Alumni Distinguished Professor, UNC School of Information and Library Science, UNC Institute on Aging.

Reducing Health Disparities in Alzheimer's Disease through Access to Participation in Research
Age is a key risk factor for developing one of the most feared and costly diseases of later life, Alzheimer's disease. Very recent figures show that an estimated 5.3 million Americans have Alzheimer's disease, and in the next year alone (by 2010) a half million new cases will be added to this number. It is projected that by 2050 there will be 11-16 million people over 65 with Alzheimer's in the US. One of the greatest challenges facing America today is providing health care to a growing and increasingly diverse aging population. By 2030, the Caucasian population age 65 and older is projected to increase by 68 percent, while the older minority population will increase by an estimated 184 percent. According to the Alzheimer's Association, African Americans are 14 to 100% more likely to have Alzheimer's disease than Whites. Contributing factors that might explain this disparity include: 1) a decreased specificity in neuropsychological measures used to assess cognitive impairment; 2) increased prevalence of cardiovascular risk factors among African Americans and differences in the influence of genetic risk factors. Paradoxically, despite their higher risk, older African Americans are diagnosed much later in the disease process than older Caucasians. Delay in diagnosis can lead to significantly reduced quality of life through all disease stages for both the older person and his or her caregivers. This project, led by a sociologist (Peggye Dilworth-Anderson) and a biologist (Goldie Byrd), is designed to educate African American communities (including elders and their families) about the risks of Alzheimer's disease, and to recruit them for our studies on Alzheimer's and related disorders.

Principal Investigator: Peggye Dilworth-Anderson, PhD, Associate Director, Aging & Diversity, UNC Institute on Aging and Professor, UNC Health Policy & Management.
Co-Investigator: Goldie Byrd, PhD, Chair & Professor, Department of Biology, North Carolina A & T University.