New UC Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases Research to advance dementia research, treatment and education
The University of Cincinnati and UC Health have launched the Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases Research (CANDR), a multidisciplinary initiative that integrates research with clinical and educational expertise to improve dementia prevention and treatment outcomes throughout the Greater Cincinnati community and beyond.
Supported by robust institutional commitments from the UC College of Medicine and UC Health, this initiative includes dedicated research and clinical space, advanced imaging access and dedicated neuropathology resources and personnel. This institutional foundation is further strengthened by significant philanthropic support from the James J. and Joan A. Gardner Family Foundation and the L.I.F.E. Foundation, which fuels early-career fellowships, pilot research funding, and a first-of-its-kind learning health system that turns everyday clinical data into faster discoveries.
Hyacinth I. Hyacinth, MD, PhD
CANDR builds on the success of the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute and its Memory Care and Brain Health Center, leveraging the collaborative efforts of faculty across UC's College of Medicine and College of Nursing, spanning nine academic departments organized into nine specialized research and clinical cores. It is positioned to accelerate Alzheimer's and dementia science through pilot research funding, expanded access to clinical trials and evidence-based care and enhanced brain health education.
“Our vision for CANDR is to bring together medical professionals, biomedical researchers and our community to provide patients and their families with access to cutting-edge care and clinical trials,” said Hyacinth I. Hyacinth, MD, PhD, CANDR co-director, The Dorothy Wood Whitaker and D. Elizabeth Price Chair for Brain Health, professor in the College of Medicine’s Department of Neurology & Rehabilitation Medicine, and member of the Alzheimer's Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTARRT) Advisory Council. “By focusing on vascular health and environmental factors early in life, we believe we can meaningfully reduce the number of people affected by dementia.”
Joseph P. Broderick, MD
“For decades, our team has studied how vascular disease — including stroke, small vessel disease and the risk factors that drive them — shapes the aging brain,” said Joseph P. Broderick, MD, CANDR co-director, professor in the College of Medicine’s Department of Neurology & Rehabilitation Medicine and director of the National Institutes of Health StrokeNet. “Because many of those risk factors are treatable, CANDR gives us a real opportunity to intervene earlier and change the trajectory of dementia for patients in our region, not just manage it after the fact.”
CANDR aligns with UC's mission to innovate and engage locally while addressing one of the region's most pressing public health challenges.
“The launch of the UC Center for Alzheimer's and Neurodegenerative Diseases Research reflects a pivotal institutional commitment to confronting one of the most urgent public health challenges of our time,” said Gregory C. Postel, MD, dean of the UC College of Medicine, Christian R. Holmes professor, executive vice president for health affairs at UC and chair of the UC Health Board of Directors. “By harnessing the depth of our academic health enterprise, we are advancing a comprehensive approach to dementia care that integrates innovative research, compassionate clinical practice and interdisciplinary education. This center strengthens our research enterprise and brings new hope to the patients and families we are privileged to serve.”
CANDR's structure is modeled after the National Institute on Aging's Alzheimer's Disease Research Center (ADRC) framework. While the center is on its journey toward this designation, today's launch as an official University of Cincinnati center is a foundational step toward joining this network of the nation's top neuroscience institutes. Achieving this distinction will open powerful opportunities to share data, collaborate on groundbreaking studies and accelerate discoveries.
Key highlights of CANDR
- Research innovation: Addressing a critical gap in Alzheimer's research by focusing on the vascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia; introducing a Nutrition and Lifestyle Core to explore how diet affects brain health; and launching the L.I.F.E. Brain Health Study, a longitudinal study enrolling 10,000 young adults ages 18 to 34 across Ohio, Northern Kentucky and West Virginia to track brain health from early adulthood onward.
- Clinical impact: In partnership with the UC Gardner Neuroscience Institute's Memory Care and Brain Health Center, CANDR's research is expanding access to timely diagnosis, coordinated lifelong care plans and new and preventive treatment approaches.
- Education excellence: Training the next generation of neuroscience leaders through the Research Education Component (REC) and the newly established George and Elizabeth Wile Scholar Program.
- Collaborative structure: Under the direction of Hyacinth and Broderick, CANDR coordinates activities across UC's College of Medicine and College of Nursing, with a dedicated Outreach, Recruitment and Engagement Core ensuring that the center's work reaches communities across both urban and rural areas of the region, including more than 100 Appalachian counties in Ohio, Kentucky and West Virginia.
Learn more about CANDR: https://med.uc.edu/institutes/development/center-for-alzheimers-and-neurodegenerative-diseases-research
Featured photo at top: CARE/Crawley building on UC's medical campus. Photo/University of Cincinnati.
Related Stories
Certain weather patterns can trigger migraines
June 30, 2026
Certain weather patterns really do trigger migraine headaches — and the incidence is more common in the Midwest. As WGN 9 in Chicago recently reported, researchers at the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine have identified two specific weather patterns associated with an increased risk of headaches.
UC achieves first-in-world remission of aggressive pituitary tumor with novel immunotherapy
May 13, 2026
Researchers at the University of Cincinnati Gardner Neuroscience Institute’s Brain Tumor Center have been confirmed as the first in the world to achieve complete remission of a rare pituitary cancer using a novel immunotherapy treatment. The findings were published in Surgical Neurology International and recently featured in The Cancer Letter.
New Imaging Research & Development Center opens on UC’s medical campus
May 28, 2026
The University of Cincinnati’s new Imaging Research & Development Center on its Cincinnati medical campus brings UC, UC Health, Cincinnati Children’s, GE HealthCare and JobsOhio together to advance MRI research and accelerate imaging innovation.