Research projects
Information about The Row Fogo Centre key research projects and collaborations.
Small Vessel Diseases (SVDs) play central role in causing brain damage leading to neurodegenerative disease (e.g., dementia) and stroke. SVD often starts silently and builds up over several years before it is noticed by the affected person. SVD is still not fully understood, and prevention and treatment remain limited.
At the Row Fogo Centre for Research into Ageing and the Brain, we bring together scientific specialities and advanced brain imaging methods from clinical and pre-clinical research, to accelerate discoveries about mechanisms of SVD and other common brain disorders, their causes and treatment. Our work has led to important advances in understanding of the causes and factors influencing the progression of small vessel disease, imaging methods, image analysis computational mapping and rating tools, and image databanks. These allow for faster image processing and disease quantification. Therapeutic approaches developed in our Centre are now being tested in clinical trials.
Current research projects
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Fondation Leducq Transatlantic Network of Excellence- Perivascular Spaces in Small Vessel Diseases
A global study of a disease responsible for almost half of all dementias and a large proportion of stroke cases is being jointly coordinated by Professor Joanna Wardlaw.
Related links
Mild Stroke Study 3 (MSS3)
Mild Stroke Study 3 (MSS3), a study of the symptoms, brain lesion changes, and blood vessel abnormalities that cause sporadic SVDs, funded by the Fondation Leducq Network on Perivascular Spaces in SVDs, the UK Dementia Research Institute, the Chief Scientist Office, and the Stroke Association grant Spotlight on Symptoms of Small Vessel Diseases (SOS SVDs).
Related links
The University of Edinburgh Mild Stroke Study 3 (MSS3) study website
Perivascular Spaces in Small Vessel Diseases website
Key publications
Protocol research paper
"Rationale and design of a longitudinal study of cerebral small vessel diseases, clinical and imaging outcomes in patients presenting with mild ischaemic stroke: Mild Stroke Study"
Brain Changes in Sleep Apnoea
Sleep and SVDs, is a study of the effects of obstructive sleep apnea and its treatment on perivascular spaces and SVD lesions in the brain in Edinburgh and Toronto, funded by the Fondation Leducq Transatlantic Network of Excellence on Perivascular Spaces in SVDs.
Related links
SVDs@Target
SVDs@Target is funded by the EU Horizon 2020 programme, with researchers in several European centres who are researching blood-brain barrier and vascular dysfunction in sporadic and genetic SVDs (INVESTIGATE@SVDs, ZOOM@SVDs) and treatments (TREAT@SVDs).
Related links
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SVDs@TARGET European Commission website
SVDs@Target ISRCTN registration link
Full record of research outputs
Lacunar Intervention Trials (LACI-1, LACI-2)
The Lacunar Intervention Trials (LACI-1, LACI-2) are randomised controlled trials testing two repurposed drugs, cilostazol and isosorbide mononitrate, to prevent worsening of SVD. LACI-1 was funded primarily by the Alzheimer’s Society and laid the groundwork for LACI-2 funded by the British Heart Foundation.
Related links
The University of Edinburgh Lacunar Intervention Trial 1 (LACI-1) website
The University of Edinburgh Lacunar Intervention Trial 1 (LACI-2) website
LACunar Intervention Trial-2 (LACI-2) US National Library of Medicine website
LACI-2 ISRCTN registration link
Key publications
LACI-1 publication presenting key results
"Tolerability, safety and intermediary pharmacological effects of cilostazol and isosorbide mononitrate, alone and combined, in patients with lacunar ischaemic stroke: The LACunar Intervention-1 (LACI-1) trial, a randomised clinical trial"
Publication Link (Edinburgh Research Explorer)
LACI-2 protocol research publication
"Protocol: The Lacunar Intervention Trial 2 (LACI-2). A trial of two repurposed licenced drugs to prevent progression of cerebral small vessel disease"
Rates, Risks and Routes to Reduce Vascular Dementia (R4VaD)
Rates, Risks and Routes to Reduce Vascular Dementia (R4VaD), is a Priority Programme in Vascular Dementia funded by The Stroke Association, British Heart Foundation and Alzheimer’s Society. It is a UK-wide observational study of risk factors for cognitive decline and dementia after all types of stroke.
Related links
The University of Edinburgh Rates, Risks and Routes to Reduce Vascular Dementia (R4VaD) website
Stroke Association R4VaD research website
ISRCTN registry link: Understanding cognitive decline after stroke and the impact of COVID-19
Link to the full record of research outputs
R4VaD (Edinburgh Research Explorer)
Key publication
"Rates, risks and routes to reduce vascular dementia (R4VAD)"
Small Vessel Diseases (SVDs) Brain Tissue Bank
Through the Edinburgh Brain Bank, patients may agree to donate samples of their brain for future research after their death. The Bank is funded by the UK Medical Research Council and Alzheimer’s Research UK.
Related links
The University of Edinburgh Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences website
Centres for Excellence in Neurodegeneration (COEN) and Joint Programme for Neurodegeneration Research (JPND)
Through the Centres for Excellence in Neurodegeneration (COEN) and the Joint Programme for Neurodegeneration Research (JPND), we have worked with international experts since 2011 to standardise the definitions of SVDs lesions on imaging, the image acquisition and analysis methods for use in studies of SVDs and to improve the availability of data for research in SVDs.
Related links
The University of Edinburgh information on STandards for ReportIng Vascular changes on Euroimaging (STRIVE)
"STRIVE Guidelines for SVD" article - website link
Alzheimer's Society Joint Programme for Neurodegenerative Diseases website
Medical Research Council - Network of Centres of Excellence in Neurodegeneration (COEN) website
HARmoNising Brain Imaging MEthodS for VaScular Contributions to Neurodegeneration (HARNESS) website
Key publications
"METACOHORTS for the study of vascular disease and its contribution to cognitive decline and neurodegeneration. An initiative of the Joint Programme for Neurodegenerative Disease research"
Publication link (Edinburgh Research Explorer)
"Harmonizing brain magnetic resonance imaging methods for vascular contributions to neurodegeneration"
Publication link (Edinburgh Research Explorer)
"Neuroimaging standards for research into small vessel disease and its contribution to ageing and neurodegeneration: A united approach"
Imaging of the small blood vessels in the retina
A window to the small vessels in the brain helps us to improve understanding of brain small vessel disease, including advancing image analysis methods, funded by The Stroke Association, the British Heart Foundation and the Allan Turing Institute.
Related links
The University of Edinburgh Centre for Clinical Brain Sciences article
"Eye imaging software could aid disease diagnosis, study suggests" article
Advancing Image Analysis for Better Detection of Perivascular Spaces
Advancing image analysis for better detection of perivascular spaces, funded by the Weston Brain Institute and Selfridges Foundation.
Related links
To be featured.
List of all projects associated with the Row Fogo Centre
View the portfolio of past research projects held at the Row Fogo Centre for Research into Ageing and the Brain on the Edinburgh Research Explorer (external link).
Row Fogo Centre for Research into Ageing and the Brain - past research projects
See also
The Row Fogo Centre associated centres
The Row Fogo Centre staff profiles
Row Fogo Centre complete list of research outputs - Edinburgh Research Explorer (external link)
The University of Edinburgh Small Vessel Diseases (SVDs) website
Edinburgh Imaging rating tools website
Image analysis tools downloads