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.