• A Charles Sturt University researcher is investigating a potential method of early detection of Alzheimer’s Disease
• Fifty patients have volunteered to undergo Medical Resonance Imaging (MRI) scans as part of the research
• The research is being conducted in Wagga Wagga over two years

A Charles Sturt researcher is investigating the use of Medical Resonance Imaging (MRI) as a tool for the early detection of Alzheimer’s Disease.

Senior Lecturer in Medical Physics in the Charles Sturt School of Dentistry and Medical Sciences and the Rural Health Research Institute Dr Xiaoming Zheng (pictured, inset) is leading the research in Wagga Wagga, supported by a team of academics, radiology staff and community representatives.

Dr Zheng said the research, titled ‘Clinical Validation of Entorhinal Volume as Imaging Biomarker for Screening and Early Detection of Alzheimer’s Disease in Rural Ageing Populations’, focuses on how to detect the disease before it reaches an advanced stage, allowing for treatment options to be enhanced and made more targeted.

“Alzheimer’s Disease is one of the major healthcare issues in rural and regional populations and ageing is the biggest contributing factor,” Dr Zheng said.

“At present, there is no cure for the disease, but therapeutical treatments are available.

“Earlier detection is critical but there is no effective tool for the screening of the disease and often patients have already developed into an advanced stage of the disease when clinical symptoms appear.”

If Dr Zheng and his team can clinically validate their preliminary findings that MRI images can be used for early detection and screening of Alzheimer’s Disease, he said it would mean they can suggest a different direction in drug development.

“Evidence suggests that Alzheimer’s Disease drugs focused on reducing or removing amyloid deposit or hyperphosphorylated tau (current methods of treatment) are not effective, so we need to find a different strategy in drug development to be able to effectively treat this disease,” he said.

The research, which received ethical approval in January 2024, is funded by a $50,000 Rural Health Research Institute Small Grant.

Participant recruitment began in March 2024, with MRI scans currently being acquired at I-MED Radiology in Wagga Wagga.

Fifty volunteer patients are undergoing multiple scans over 20 months with four months between each.

The project is expected to be complete by the end of 2025.