Dementia Translational Research Collaboration

Working with the NIHR Dementia TRC

“The NIHR Dementia TRC presents a unique and timely opportunity to make the UK a global leader in early phase clinical trials in dementia. We are entering a new era in potential treatments for Alzheimer's and other diseases. It is critical we seize the moment and come together as a community to speed up therapies and optimise chances for our patients”

Dr Catherine Mummery - NIHR Dementia TRC Chair

Our ready-formed Dementia TRC provides streamlined access to networks of internationally recognised investigators in the UK's leading centres of excellence.

With world-leading dementia expertise in experimental medicine and with access to state-of-the-art techniques and facilities, the Dementia TRC offers opportunities over and above its individual parts.

Collectively, we can provide significant opportunities to expand research capability and capacity, as well as offer a unique vehicle to enable collaboration and knowledge sharing with industry and the charity sector.

With our support, you can also gain access to patient and public cohorts from multiple sites across the UK, whether it's for involvement in your research and project development or to obtain their input into your study design.

We’re open to collaborate with academics and any life sciences company, including pharmaceutical and diagnostic companies, as well as other funders and charities, to carry out experimental medicine investigations in dementia and related diseases. We will consider fully-funded projects as well as projects that will look for third party funding.

If you have an idea or intervention you’d like to further develop, contact us.

Our expertise and capabilities

Our centres host world-class expertise and capabilities, and focus on:

• Improving, aligning and streamlining imaging (including MRI and PET) techniques and processes;
• Developing novel biomarkers to facilitate early and more effective diagnosis of neurodegenerative diseases;
• Discovery, development and delivery of innovative disease-modifying therapies, which include those discovered through the longitudinal study of genetically at-risk cohorts;
• Investigating novel technologies and devices, including in the wearables space, as tools for diagnosing, monitoring and treatment;
• Extrapolation of discoveries in young-onset dementia to older patient groups;
• Detection, prevention and treatment of protein misfolding and aggregation in dementia. 

We also want to develop the skills of researchers in the field of dementia and enhance the reputation of the dementia research landscape in the UK. 

Our specialties include, but are not limited to:

• Late-onset dementias, including Alzheimer’s disease, vascular disease and Lewy body dementia
• Young-onset dementias
• Frontotemporal dementia with motor neuron disease
• Parkinson’s disease, including progression to dementia
• Neuroinflammation
• Huntington’s disease.

We regularly review areas of unmet need to determine emerging topics of focus for the group.

Who we are

The NIHR Dementia TRC is part of the UK government’s response to the growing challenge of dementia. 

The TRC comprises 8 NIHR Biomedical Research Centres (BRCs) with dementia-related research themes and 3 Clinical Research Facilities (CRFs). These BRCs and CRFs are world-leaders in dementia translational research, based within top NHS-university partnerships.

Each centre is represented by an academic lead who acts as an advocate for the collaboration, provides scientific input into study design, and identifies and supports collaborative and business development activities.

The breadth of expertise in dementia in the UK

The map shows the locations of the dementia centres based across the UK (listed below) which are part of this TRC.

Our academic leads and centres

• NIHR UCLH BRC
  Dr Catherine Mummery Chair
• NIHR Newcastle BRC 
  Professor John-Paul Taylor(Joint Deputy Chair) and Professor David Burn
• NIHR Oxford Health BRC
  Dr Vanessa Raymont  (Joint Deputy Chair)
• Queens University Belfast
  Professor Bernadette McGuinness
• NIHR Cambridge BRC
  Professor James Rowe
• Alzheimer Scotland Dementia Research Centre and NRS Neuroprogressive and Dementia Research Network - University of Edinburgh
  Dr Tom Russ
• NIHR Exeter BRC
  Professor Louise Allan, Professor David Llewellyn and Professor Clive Ballard
• NIHR Imperial BRC
  Professor Paresh Malhotra
• King's College London
  Professor Dag Aarsland 
• NIHR Manchester BRC
  Professor Chris Plack
• Greater Manchester Dementia Research Centre
  Dr Ross Dunne
• NIHR Oxford BRC
  Professor Peter Rothwell and Professor Clare Mackay
• NIHR Sheffield BRC
  Dr Dan Blackburn

Our projects

Brain Health Clinics 

We have established a network of multi-disciplinary clinicians and academics working in cognitive services across the UK.

We share an ambition to fill the gap in dementia prevention services and are committed to collaborating on the development of clinical services and research in this area. We will do this by systematically identifying dementia risk factors at an early stage in people that present with mild neurodegenerative symptoms, with the aim to reduce their chance of developing dementia. To join the network and collaborate with us, please get in touch. 

Dementia TRC case studies

Latest news about dementia research