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The Framingham Brain Donation Program: neuropathology along the cognitive continuum
Au R, Seshadri S, Knox K, Beiser A, Himali JJ, Cabral HJ, Auerbach S, Green RC et al.. Current Alzheimer research, 2012-07-01
Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models
The Framingham Heart Study has enrolled 3 generations of participants, the original cohort (gen 1) enrolled in 1948, the offspring cohort (gen 2) enrolled in 1971 and the third generation enrolled in 2002. Participants have been undergoing prospective surveillance for incident stroke and dementia and embedded within this cohort is the voluntary Framingham Brain Donation Program that was begun in 1997. Participants who register to become brain donors have had one or more brain MR and cognitive test batteries administered.
Key findings
- Participants have been undergoing prospective surveillance for incident stroke and dementia and embedded within this cohort is the voluntary Framingham Brain Donation Program that was begun in 1997.
- Participants who register to become brain donors have had one or more brain MR and cognitive test batteries administered.
- In addition, they undergo neurological evaluation as indicated, record review and post-mortem next-of-kin interview to determine the presence, type and extent of antemortem, clinical neurological diagnoses and to assign a retrospective clinical dementia rating (CDR) Scale score.
- Between 1997 and 2009 there were 1806 deaths, 186 of which were among registered brain donors and of these 139 brains could be examined. 58% were deemed cognitively normal at death.
Why it matters
This article describes the Framingham Brain Donation Program and its neuropathology along the cognitive continuum. It does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention for Alzheimer's disease, and it is a description of a research resource.
Study details
- Participants59
- Effect size77.3%; 91.9%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 49/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Current Alzheimer research) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Current Alzheimer Research: journal h-index 119 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 1 / 5 | 2012 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 59 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 66 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 4.1 citations a year over 16 year(s) since 2012 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 2.3× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 3 / 6 | Cited by 13 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 2 / 4 | Cited 16 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Ann Carolyn McKee: h-index 104 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Boston University: institution h-index 1,456 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 22471865) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 49 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.2174/156720512801322609
- PubMed: 22471865
- Original source →
- Free full text: Current Alzheimer Research →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Au, R., Seshadri, S., Knox, K., Beiser, A., Himali, J. J., Cabral, H. J., et al. (2012). The Framingham Brain Donation Program: neuropathology along the cognitive continuum. Current Alzheimer research. https://doi.org/10.2174/156720512801322609
Vancouver
Au R, Seshadri S, Knox K, Beiser A, Himali JJ, Cabral HJ, et al. The Framingham Brain Donation Program: neuropathology along the cognitive continuum. Current Alzheimer research. 2012. doi:10.2174/156720512801322609. PMID: 22471865.
BibTeX
@article{au2012-22471865,
author = {Au, R. and Seshadri, S. and Knox, K. and Beiser, A. and Himali, J. J. and Cabral, H. J. and Auerbach, S. and Green, R. C. and others},
title = {{The Framingham Brain Donation Program: neuropathology along the cognitive continuum}},
journal = {Current Alzheimer research},
year = {2012},
doi = {10.2174/156720512801322609},
pmid = {22471865},
url = {https://doi.org/10.2174/156720512801322609}
}
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