PhD at Oxford hits close to home
But it is something that occupies a lot of Ronan McNeill's mind.
"I've had four family members in the past 10 years who have passed away with various different dementias.
"Unfortunately, it's quite prominent in my family.
"There's a strong genetic link through many different age disorders, and various dementias aren't an exception of that."
The University of Otago neuroscience, psychology and computer science graduate said seeing his elders "drift away" with dementia was difficult to watch, and he now fears he will have to see it again in his grandmother and his mother in the not-too-distant future.
"In some forms of dementia, the decline is very rapid.
"In others, it's a long drawn-out process, and I saw that in the wisest leaders of my childhood, where they lost their autonomy, their independence.
"And to see them drift away to the point where they don't recognise you any more, it was quite sad.
"For me, it's my mother and my grandmother — the two central figures in my life who've raised me — that I'm really worried about. They could go down a similar path in the future."
While the process was tough, it had also been "formative" and he was now headed for Balliol College at Oxford University, England, to develop advanced neuroimaging tools that could improve clinical monitoring, early detection and the effective treatment of dementia, he said.
The research will be part of his PhD at the Nuffield Department of Clinical Neurosciences.
"In my opinion, this is one of the leading challenges that the world's going to be facing within the next century, and families all around the world are facing this problem."
His research would focus on microglial cells — the primary immune cells of the central nervous system.
They play a crucial role in maintaining brain health and responding to injury or disease.
In a healthy brain, they contribute to homeostasis, synapse pruning and neuronal support.
However, they can also become activated in response to various stimuli, leading to neuroinflammation which contributes to the progression of neurological disorders.
"Microglial cells are quite unique in the brain, because they have an ability to migrate towards damage or pathogens.
"If we can find a way to use various different types of MRI scans to recognise the fingerprints of these microglial cells, we may be able to identify a person that has early signs of dementia."
His research at Oxford was expected to last up to four years, and was paid for with support from two Universities New Zealand scholarships — the William Georgetti Scholarship and the LB Wood Scholarship.
Not surprisingly, his strong connection to family means he will return to Dunedin once he has finished.
"That's a major drive for why I'm doing this research and wanting to undertake this experience and opportunity for growth.
"I'm looking forward to coming back home and sharing what I've learned with the next generation of New Zealand leaders in this field."
john.lewis@odt.co.nz
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