The Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS) was formed in 1991 as a cooperative agreement between the National Institute on Aging (NIA) and the University of California, San Diego. The ADCS is a major initiative for Alzheimer’s disease (AD) clinical studies in the Federal Government, addressing treatments for both cognitive and behavioral symptoms. The ADCS is part of the NIA Division of Neuroscience’s effort to facilitate the discovery, development and testing of new drugs for the treatment of AD and is part of the Alzheimer’s Disease Prevention Initiative as well.
Welcome to the ADCS at UC San Diego
Current Programs
BenfoTeam Study
The BenfoTeam Study tests if increasing thiamine in the blood slows cognitive decline in people with early Alzheimer’s disease, including Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) and mild dementia.
Gene Therapy Program
The goal of the Epstein Family Alzheimer's Research Collaboration Gene Therapy Program (GTP) is to achieve a successful gene therapy treatment for Alzheimer’s disease in people living with the Jalisco PSEN1 mutation.
Powder for Pennies
The Epstein Family Alzheimer's Research Collaboration Powder for Pennies (P4P) Program aims to create a unique incubator and screening platform to test an array of single and combinatorial repurposed medicines and natural products in clinical trials for the treatment and prevention of Alzheimer’s disease.
Virtual Reality Brain Health Study
The Virtual Reality Brain Health Study is a novel study that uses three methods of lifestyle intervention involving physical exercise and Virtual Reality to promote brain health and cognition in older adults.
Asian Cohort for Alzheimer’s Disease
The Asian Cohort for Alzheimer’s Disease (ACAD) is an international collaboration with the goal of compiling a robust sample size of Asian American and Canadian subjects for Alzheimer’s disease research.
Longitudinal Menopause Project
The goal of the Longitudinal Menopause Project (LMP) is to generate one of the most detailed examinations of brain health and menopause in the US to date. Recruitment will begin in Fall 2026 for women ages 40–55.
CAN-THUMBS UP
The Canadian Therapeutic Platform Trial for Multidomain Interventions to Prevent Dementia – CAN-THUMBS UP (CTU) is a group of over 100 Canadian researchers within the Canadian Consortium on Neurodegeneration in Aging focused on dementia prevention. The CTU platform was initiated in 2019 and is part of the World Wide FINGERS prevention initiative.