Researchers to Create Genetics Bank to Aid Fight Against Alzheimer's

The National Institute on Aging (NIA) will work with the Alzheimer's Association to recruit more than 1,000 families over the next three years to create a bank of family genetic material and cell lines that hopefully will help researchers better understand and prevent Alzheimer's disease.

Families with more than one member affected by Alzheimer's disease will be asked to donate blood and provide medical, family and demographic information from both affected and unaffected family members.

All genetic information will be completely confidential, according to the two organizations. Researchers tapping into the bank for genetic material will not be able to identify samples on an individual basis.

"We have heard from patients and families that research to slow down or prevent Alzheimer's disease is their top priority," said Dr. Samuel Gandy, an Alzheimer's Association official and director of the Farber Institute for Neurosciences at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. "This science is absolutely essential to cracking the cause of common forms of Alzheimer's."

Other sources: Alzheimer's Association