The Center for Vital Longevity

The Center for Vital Longevity (CVL) is a research center of the University of Texas at Dallas.[1] CVL houses scientists studying the cognitive neuroscience of aging and ways to maintain cognitive health for life.[2] Researchers at the CVL also investigate how to slow cognitive aging and methods for the early detection of age-related neurodegenerative disorders, such as Alzheimer's Disease. Other research includes studies investigating the cognitive neuroscience of memory, and other fundamental cognitive processes.[3] The Center's founding director Dr. Denise Park is serves as its director of research. The current director of the Center is Dr. Michael D. Rugg.[4] Both Drs. Park and Rugg are fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and the Association for Psychological Science and hold distinguished chairs in the UT Dallas School of Behavioral and Brain Sciences. Six full-time faculty belong to the Center, with each faculty member leading a research group comprising a mixture of postdoctoral fellows, graduate students and research assistants. The Center’s facilities, in Dallas, Texas, include several research laboratories, including those dedicated to the EEG and trans-cranial magnetic stimulation (TMS). Investigators conduct functional and structural neuro-imaging studies at the Advanced Imaging Research Center (AIRC) on the nearby campus of the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center,[5] part of a collaborative enterprise between UT Dallas, UT Arlington and UT Southwestern.

Center researchers are supported by several competitively reviewed research grants. These grants support several recently completed and ongoing research programs. Among these are the “Synapse Project,” led by Dr. Park, which is designed to test the hypothesis that leading an engaged lifestyle facilitates brain health and may slow down the process of normal cognitive aging, as well as two large-scale studies examining brain structure and function across the course of a healthy lifespan.[6]

Dr. Michael D. Rugg joined CVL in 2011. Dr. Park founded CVL in 2010.[7]

References

  1. ↑ "The Center for Vital Longevity at UT Dallas". The University of Texas at Dallas.
  2. ↑ "Center for Vital Longevity at UT Dallas plans aging and cognition conference". Dallas Morning News.
  3. ↑ Siegfried, Amanda (May–June 2011). "APS Observer". Association for Psychological Science 24 (5): 13–15.
  4. ↑ "UTD professor explains how the human brain changes with age". Dallas Morning News.
  5. ↑ "Gov. Perry: Texas' Biotechnology Industry is Leading to Life Saving Ideas". Office of the Governor, State of Texas. Retrieved 13 Sep 2010.
  6. ↑ Silverman, Lauren. "Pick Up A New Hobby To Prevent Memory Loss". KERA/National Public Radio affiliate. Retrieved 23 April 2014.
  7. ↑ "UTD professor explains how the human brain changes with age". Dallas Morning News.