SUMMARY
The laboratory of Clifford R. Jack Jr., M.D., is engaged in brain imaging research in cognitive aging, Alzheimer's disease and related disorders.
Dr. Jack's research team employs MRI and positron emission tomography (PET) to study the biology of brain aging and causes of cognitive impairment and develops image-processing algorithms for quantitatively measuring the information obtained from brain imaging. They employ a variety of MRI-based brain imaging modalities, including structural MRI, spectroscopy, functional connectivity and brain water diffusion. They also employ F-fluorodeoxyglucose positron emission tomography (FDG-PET) and amyloid PET.
The lab's clinical imaging research is tightly integrated into the Mayo Clinic Alzheimer's Disease Patient Registry (Mayo Clinic Study of Aging) and Mayo's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, which conduct National Institutes of Health-funded longitudinal clinical and epidemiological research projects investigating normal aging, Alzheimer's disease and other dementias.
Dr. Jack also collaborates with a number of investigators outside Mayo, and his laboratory is the imaging center for several large national multisite studies.
Focus areas
- Brain imaging. Techniques employed include MRI, PET and amyloid PET.
- Aging and dementia aging. Dr. Jack's team looks specifically at cognitive aging, Alzheimer's disease and dementia.
Significance to patient care
With brain imaging, it is possible to ascertain pathological processes in the living subject. Dr. Jack's laboratory uses brain imaging to understand the pathological basis for cognitive aging and dementia.
Professional highlights
- Distinguished Mayo Clinic Investigator Award, 2013
- Elected member, Institute of Medicine of the National Academies, 2013
- Gold Medal, International Society for Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, 2012
- Metlife Foundation Award for Medical Research, 2012
- Potamkin Prize for Research in Pick's, Alzheimer's, and Related Diseases, American Academy of Neurology, 2008
- Alexander Family Professor of Alzheimer's Disease Research, 2007