Can brain scans unlock the secret to Alzheimer's resilience?

NCT ID NCT04150198

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Recruitment status, easiest to join first

Recruiting now This study
This trial is taking on new participants right now.
Not yet recruiting
Registered, but not yet taking participants.
By invitation only
Not open to general applications. Only people the study team invites can take part.
Paused
Paused for now. It may or may not start again.
Ongoing
Running, but no longer taking on new participants.
Completed
The trial has finished. Results may not be published yet.
Stopped early
Stopped early, before it reached the end. That can be for many reasons, including safety.
Cancelled
Cancelled before anyone took part.

Expanded access (not trials)

Expanded access
Not a trial. This treatment can be requested outside a study, case by case, for people who qualify.
Expanded access (paused)
Not a trial. The treatment can normally be requested outside a study, but is unavailable right now.
Expanded access (ended)
Not a trial. The treatment could once be requested outside a study, but no longer can.
Approved
The treatment has been approved, so it is available normally rather than through this programme.

When the status isn't known

Details not published
The full record has not been published yet, so there is little to show here.
Status unknown
This status has not been confirmed recently, so it may be out of date.

First seen Aug 20, 2026 · Last updated Aug 21, 2026 · Updated 1 time

Summary

This study investigates why some people with early-onset Alzheimer's disease or a variant called posterior cortical atrophy show different patterns of brain damage. Using advanced PET and MRI scans, researchers will map tau protein deposits and brain network activity to identify 'resilient' neural networks that may resist the disease. The goal is to understand the mechanisms behind this resilience, which could inform future treatments. Participants will undergo a single imaging session lasting about three hours.

What this could mean

Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.

Active substance
PET/MR imaging with 18F-AV1451 tau tracer
What this could lead to
If successful, this could reveal why some brains resist Alzheimer's damage, potentially pointing toward new ways to protect cognitive function.
What could go wrong
This is an observational imaging study, not a treatment trial. It may not directly lead to therapies, and findings might not apply to all Alzheimer's patients.

This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.

Study facts

What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.

Phase

Not a phased trial

Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.

Participants

About 45 people

The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.

Started

Dec 2021

Expected to finish

Dec 2029

An estimate. End dates often move.

Lead sponsor

A government agency

The lead sponsor is a government body.

Who can take part

This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.

Ages

40 to 80 years

Sex

Anyone

Healthy volunteers

Accepted

You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.

Show the full entry requirements

Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.

Inclusion Criteria: 1. For all subjects: * Affiliation to a social security insurance or beneficiary * Informed consent form signed by the participant or his / her legal representative * Participants aged 40 to 80 years. 2. Selection of AD-Y group \- In vivo proof of Alzheimer's pathology: * Determination of specific proteins on the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF, a routine care procedure). The values considered pathological (AD) are Aβ1-42 peptide \<500 (μg / ml), and / or tau protein\> 450 and phosphorylated tau protein\> 60, IATI index \<1, tau / Aβ protein ratios \> 1.23 as well as phosphorylated tau protein / Aβ1-42\> 0.211. * And / or a positive PET-amyloid imaging test. * Early-onset episodic memory deficit (\<65 years), progressive onset with evidence of hippocampal amnesic syndrome at neuropsychological assessment. In memory tests, the amnesic hippocampal syndrome is defined by: a deficit of the free recall despite a reinforced encoding, an effectiveness of the indexing or an impairment of the recognition capabilities, the presence of intrusions. The presence during the tests of false memories spontaneous (intrusions) or provoked (false recognitions) is also very contributive to the definition of amnesic syndrome of the hippocampal type. 3. PCA group selection Patients with a clinical and cognitive profile suggestive of PCA, characterized by: * an in vivo proof of the Alzheimer pathology (see selection of the AD-Y group) * a specific impairment of neuro-visual abilities, in the absence of major disorders of episodic memory (hippocampal) and executive functions. Two possible variants: * occipito-temporal variant: visuo-perceptive deficit in the foreground, early onset and progressive worsening; lack of visual identification of objects, symbols, words or faces; * biparietal variant: visuospatial deficit in the foreground, early settlement and progressive worsening; Gerstmann syndrome; Balint syndrome; gestural apraxia; visual-spatial neglect. 4. Selection of the control subjects group * Normal neurological and neuropsychological examinations. * Control subjects will be matched in age to patients. Non-inclusion Criteria: 1. General non-inclusion criteria: * Medical history of torsade de pointe or risk of torsade de pointes * Patient treated with drugs known to lengthen QT (see www.crediblemeds.org) * Contraindication to radiopharmaceutical injection: For precautions of safety of use of the radiopharmaceutical, a blood sample allowing to check the renal and hepatic functions will be realized before imagery. The delay between the sampling and the neuroimaging visit is left to the investigator's discretion based on the patient's biological results. In particular, the glomerular filtration rate will be calculated from the results obtained. In the event of renal insufficiency (GFR 30mL / min / 1.73m2), hepatic insufficiency or any other biological anomaly of grade 3 or higher detected during these analyzes, the participant will not be able to carry out PET imaging. In this case, the results of the analyzes will be sent to the doctor indicated by the participant. This evaluation, which involves a determination of serum creatinine, is part of the standard routine biological assessment performed in the context of cognitive disorders Inability to provide informed consent by participant or legal representative: * Patient deprived of liberty by decision of justice or not benefiting from social cover. * Person in the process of participating in another therapeutic research or in a period of exclusion from another research. * Participants with a contraindication to MRI: pacemaker or cardiac defibrillator, implanted equipment activated by an electrical, magnetic or mechanical system, haemostatic clips of intracerebral aneurysms or carotid arteries , carriers of orthopedic implants. * Contraindication to radiopharmaceutical injection: known hypersensitivity to the active substance or to any of the excipients, renal impairment (GFR 30mL / min / 1.73m2), hepatic insufficiency or any other biological abnormality of grade 3 or higher * Person suffering from claustrophobia. * Pregnancy (for women of childbearing age, a urine pregnancy test will be performed on the day of the inclusion visit and the PET-MRI examination). * Any symptoms or biological values suggestive of a systemic disorder (renal, hepatic, cardiovascular, pulmonary) or any other medical conditions that could interfere with the interpretation of test results or compromise the health of patients. * Person subject to a legal safeguard. 2. Specific non-inclusion criteria for AD-Y and PCA patients: * Sudden appearance of cognitive deficits. * Gait disturbances, convulsions, major behavior modification. * Focal alterations to neurological examination, extrapyramidal signs, hallucinations, fluctuations. cognitive. * Psychiatric, cerebrovascular, metabolic, inflammatory pathology. 3. Specific non-inclusion criteria for control subjects: * Pathological neurological examination * History of neurological disease (in particular ischemic stroke or neurodegenerative disease) or psychiatric illness (particularly severe depression, psychosis, or bipolar illness still requiring drug treatment at the time of inclusion) * Physical affection that is serious or can interfere with cognitive functions.

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Conditions

The condition(s) this trial relates to.

As listed by the trial registrant

The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.

How to take part

Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.

  1. The places running it

    2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.

  2. The official record

    ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.

    Open the record ↗

  3. A doctor treating you

    A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.

Contacts and locations

Locations

  • Service Hospitalier Frédéric Joliot SHFJ

    RECRUITING

    Orsay, 91401 cedex, France

  • Service de Médecine Nucléaire - Hopital La Pitié Salpetriere

    RECRUITING

    Paris, 75013, France

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