Neurological diseases are the leading cause of disability worldwide and a major contributor to health problems in children and adults. As the majority of these conditions result in lifelong disabilities, the implications for the family and for society is significant.

A significant number of adult and childhood neurological diseases have a genetic component and are caused by changes in our DNA and/or RNA leading to functional changes in the central nervous system. However, for many patients afflicted with these disorders, traditional genetic testing does not identify a clear genetic cause. The goal of this study will be to use newer genetic techniques to evaluate patients and families with neurological disorders to better understand the genetic basis of the disease.

Alzheimer's disease and Epilepsy may affect over 80% of individuals that have Down syndrome by the age of 60. Biomarkers found in the blood can enhance our understanding of the earliest changes linked to disease and may enhance clinical detection and healthy aging for individuals with Down syndrome.

The purpose of this study is to discover early neurobiological processes underlying the transition from healthy aging to disease. Our research team has developed technology that allows detection of small changes in the brain that get transferred to the blood.

We are recruiting individuals that either have or do not have Down syndrome for this biomarker study. Participants should be between the ages of 6 months and 85 years old and may include mothers and siblings of a child with Down syndrome. Infants and children will require consent form a parental or legal guardian.

Each participant will provide a blood sample for research purposes. We will also gather some basic health information about senses, habits, exercise level and smoking/vaping exposures.

Patients with Alzheimer Disease and patients with Heart failure (and a control group free from both the previous mentioned conditions) will be evaluated with cardiac and neuropsychological assessments, in order to investigate the relationship between the two conditions. The study consists of two initial visits, and a 4- and 8-year follow-up visit.