The San Antonio Heart and Mind Study

ABSTRACT Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and AD-related dementias (AD/ADRD) disproportionately affect minoritized populations. Compared to non-Hispanic Whites, older Hispanic adults in the United States are estimated to have a 50% increased risk of AD and are projected to bear the largest relative increase in AD/ADRD cases by 2060. Mexican Americans not only represent the largest segment of Hispanics in the United States, but they also experience a high burden of cardiometabolic diseases, which has the potential to increase AD/ADRD disparities over the next decades. However, Hispanics are underrepresented in epidemiological settings and more research is needed on this ethnic group to identify the factors contributing to AD/ADRD disparities. In this project, we propose to re-establish an epidemiological cohort initiated in 1979 to study ethnic differences in diabetes and cardiovascular disease. The San Antonio Heart Study enrolled 5,158 Mexican American and non-Hispanic White adults from socioculturally diverse neighborhoods in San Antonio, Texas. Through this grant, survivors will be invited to a new study focused on cognitive aging and AD/ADRD: The San Antonio Heart and Mind Study (SAHMS). We will perform comprehensive assessments for cognitive function, brain MRI, amyloid and tau PET, the measurement of blood- and CSF-based biomarkers, cardiometabolic disease, psychosocial attributes, and sociocultural factors. Participants will also be invited to our brain donation program for further neuropathological characterization. By leveraging the rich set of longitudinal data obtained four decades ago and newly collected information through this grant, we have an ideal setting to better understand the role of midlife and late-life factors contributing to AD/ADRD disparities in Mexican American older adults. Our talented multidisciplinary team offers complementary expertise for the success of this project. Results from our study have the potential to inform health policies aiming to prevent and delay AD/ADRD over the next decades, especially in the underserved population of Mexican Americans.