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Grant Award

Tara Moore, PhD,Awarded NIH Grant to Study Age-Related Cognitive Decline

Tara Moore, PhD, professor of anatomy & neurobiology, has been awarded a five-year, RF1 $3.2M grant from the NIH’s National Institute of Aging for her project “Extracellular vesicle treatment and age-related neuropathology in non-human primates.” This grant will fund years six through 10 of Moore’s original RO1 grant.

Decline in cognitive ability and brain degeneration are major challenges of aging, with few effective therapies. Moore’s past studies revealed that small particles, extracelluar vesicles (EVs), from young stem cells can boost memory and brain connectivity in aging models, suggesting a novel way to slow age-related decline. They also found evidence that EVs from female stem cell donors may be especially effective. In this project, Moore will compare EVs from male and female donors to uncover how they differ in their efficacy to reverse age related brain pathology. These findings may pave the way for sex-specific, precision therapies to slow memory loss with aging and potentially protect against Alzheimer’s disease.

Moore, who also is an associate dean of research, ad interim, director of the Laboratory of Interventions for Cortical Injury and Cognitive Decline and a co-investigator in the Laboratory of Cognitive Neurobiology, studies cognitive aging and cortical brain injury. Her work has contributed significantly to the understanding of the neurobiological basis of higher cognitive function and the effects of age, hypertension and injury on the brain and the assessment of therapeutics to reverse these effects.

Moore also has made significant contributions to the teaching and training missions of the school by creating and developing two successful master’s programs – the Biomedical Forensic Sciences Program in 2006, for which she served as associate director for three years, and the MS in Forensic Anthropology in 2008, for which she has served as director since its inception. She also has served in various roles on the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) since 2010, including scientific member, vice chair and chair.

Moore received her BA in psychology from the University of Calgary and her doctorate in Anatomy and Neurobiology from Boston University in 2000.