Alzheimer’s Drug Discovery Foundation (ADDF) - Charles River : Use of Aged Rats as a Relevant Preclinical Model for the Development of Therapeutics for Cognitive Aging and Alzheimer’s Disease

To accelerate the discovery of new drugs for cognitive aging and Alzheimer’s disease, ADDF and Charles River Discovery Research Services (CRDRS) implement a grant program to fund pre-clinical studies focused on proof-of-concept testing of novel compounds in aged rats. CRDRS has made available aged rats up to 24 months old and relevant services that include: Morris Water Maze behavioral testing, in vivo 1H-MRS for N-Acetyl-Aspartate and other metabolites, FDG-PET imaging, biochemical and histological endpoint assessments, and pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic analysis of compounds in biological fluids. Funding: $150K for one year, with the possibility of follow-on funding for one additional year. Priority interests for this RFP include:
• Testing of novel compounds and targets proposed to be associated with age-related neurodegeneration and impairment in cognition and behavior
• Employing novel outcome measures and/or biomarkers in the aged rat model.
http://www.alzdiscovery.org/