USC’s bench is deep and its scope is wide when it comes to research on Alzheimer’s disease.

In Paul Thompson’s lab, researchers query a vast trove of brain images and DNA from all over the world to glean insights that would be otherwise impossible to pinpoint. Judy Pa explores how exercise and cognitive training, assisted by virtual reality, might delay cognitive decline. J.C. Chen wants to know if the dirty air we breathe is stealing our memories.

USC’s federal funding for Alzheimer’s and related dementias hit $92 million in 2020, a reflection of the university’s position as one of the nation’s leading Alzheimer’s research centers. And that figure, documented in the National Institutes of Health’s most recent categorical spending report, is just a slice. It doesn’t include totals for active, multiyear grants, nor does it include innovative projects with funds from other sources such as the National Science Foundation or the Alzheimer’s Association.

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