Grant: Project Grant

Memory loss is the most common and debilitating cognitive impairment resulting from Alzheimer's disease (AD) and from the mild cognitive impairment (MCI) which often precedes AD. The numbers are staggering. Currently 564,000 Canadians live with AD or a related dementia, costing $33 billion annually (a figure set to rise to $293 billion by 2040). Memory loss diminishes one's sense of identity and autonomy, leading to a vicious cycle of social isolation and depression, which in turn exacerbates memory loss. Digital Memory Augmentation (DMA) is an approach to mitigate memory loss in which portable devices capture information about everyday episodes, allowing for later review and recollection. DMA has already been shown to produce memory benefits - even more so than common strategies such as keeping a diary. However, prior DMA approaches have not been informed by our understanding of brain function; moreover, the benefits of DMA for brain health and for everyday function have not been carefully quantified in a large group of older individuals. This project aims to develop a new kind of DMA that optimally reduces memory impairment in MCI/AD. This will be the first memory device designed based on our understanding of how the brain internally "reminds" itself of prior events. The device will mimic important functions of the hippocampus - a brain area damaged in MCI/AD- by replaying and reorganizing movies of an individual's life to help stabilize and retrieve memories. This project will produce: (i) an optimized memory prosthetic device and a publicly available App that mimics the internal memory strategies of our brains; (ii) reliable data on the device's efficacy for mitigating brain deterioration and daily function in people with memory impairments. Overall, this project translates cognitive neuroscience research into a practical and non-invasive solution to a problem profoundly affecting millions of Canadians.