Baycrest

8 Rotman Research Institute Annual Report 2015-2016 Dr. Cheryl Grady Senior Scientist, RRI Canada Research Chair in Neurocognitive Aging Professor, Departments of Psychology & Psychiatry University of Toronto Research Focus: Memory & Aging Identifying neurodegenerative diseases by understanding natural aging of the brain Older adults are known to have difficulty remembering objects when they are linked to one another, which is known as associative memory. If a person has placed their keys in a cupboard near the door, the older adult would be familiar with both the keys and cupboard, but may not remember they put the keys in this cupboard. Associative memory is important since all memories require additional context. This type of memory is affected by Alzheimer's disease and losing this ability impacts older adults' quality of life since they may struggle with daily activities such as remembering where their car is parked. Understanding this brain mechanism will assist in designing learning strategies that will make it easier for older adults to remember the information acquired. Recently, Dr. Cheryl Grady discovered that when younger adults were tested on their associative memory, their brain activity showed a distinct pattern of activity. But when older adults completed the same task, their brain activity was unpredictable, which correlated with worse associative memory. As people age, their ability to create specific types of memory declines, but there is limited understanding about the origins of these issues. By understanding natural changes within an older adult's brain activity, this could allow clinicians to differentiate between normal brain activity and dysfunctional brain activity caused by neurodegenerative disorders. As a Canada Research Chair in Neurocognitive Aging, Dr. Grady's next project will explore the impact of aging on executive function (a person's ability to process and act upon information) across the entire adult lifespan – typically studies of aging are conducted on younger and older adults. Her work is supported by a Canadian Institutes of Health Research Foundation Grant for Senior Investigators, awarded in 2015. "Older adults are known to have worse executive function than younger adults, but these changes occur at various rates among middle-aged adults", says Dr. Grady, who is one of the few researchers in Canada studying this age range. "Understanding what happens during this middle adult age could provide earlier warning signs for when a person's brain health may be headed down an unhealthy path and provide earlier opportunities to set it on the right track," says Dr. Grady. PRIORITY #1: THEORY-DRIVEN RESEARCH MEMORY & AGING

• Cover