Pilot Awards | Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience

What if we could understand the aging process and uncover the secrets to maintaining cognitive vitality well into old age?

As we age, our cognitive abilities may decline, and many of us may face memory loss, dementia, or neurodegeneration. However, research reveals that some individuals are resilient to the effects of time and maintain cognitive sharpness even after reaching 100 years of age.

Our Pilot Grants explore promising avenues in brain resilience research, offering investigators the resources to advance innovative ideas that push the boundaries of our understanding. These grants target high-potential research, supporting projects that seek to uncover new pathways in brain aging and resilience. By fostering these bold ideas, we aim to generate foundational insights that could lead to significant breakthroughs in promoting cognitive health into old age.

Funded Pilot grant projects

Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience
Pilot Awards
2024
Mapping and rejuvenating the brain glycocalyx to improve resiliency

This project focuses on the brain’s “glycocalyx”—a complex network of sugars on the cell surface, which plays a crucial role in many brain functions including how neurons connect and communicate and how memories are formed and stored.

Knight Initiative for Brain Resilience
Pilot Awards
2024
The effect of live-attenuated herpes zoster vaccination on blood-based biomarkers of neurodegeneration

More and more studies suggest that infections may be an important cause of dementia and possibly brain aging more generally. The most convincing evidence exists for herpesviruses, which “hibernate” in the nervous system. Recently,  an innovative causal approach in data from the United Kingdom has been used to suggest that shingles (herpes zoster) vaccination prevents or delays dementia.