Grant: Operating Grant

By age 85, one out of every two Canadians will suffer from a stroke, dementia or both. Covert or sub-clinical stroke that typically comprises many small brain vessels yet results in no clinical symptoms is a major risk factor for both overt stroke and dementia. It often develops gradually years before dementia develops, thus offering a window of therapeutic opportunity. Although many therapies have been tried to alter dementia progression, only treatment of midlife hypertension has shown benefit. Meanwhile there are many treatments to reduce stroke risk. There are very few treatment options other than anti-hypertensive drugs to simultaneously lower the risk of both stroke and Alzheimer's disease, and even fewer are universally available. In this proposal, we will investigate the link between covert stroke and development of Alzheimer's disease in a mouse model. We will focus on the vascular consequences of stroke that lead to increased risk for Alzheimer's disease with the ultimate goal of supporting vascular remodeling to prevent cognitive dysfunction.