09/12/2023
By Deepika Dinesh
The Zuckerberg College of Health Sciences invites you to attend a doctoral dissertation defense by Deepika Dinesh.
Degree: Doctoral
Date: Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2023
Time: 10 a.m.
Location: Virtual. Please contact deepika_dinesh@student.uml.edu for the Zoom link.
Thesis/Dissertation Title: Gut-Brain Axis and Cognitive Function in Boston-area Puerto Ricans
Committee Chair:
Prof. Natalia Palacios, Department of Public Health, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Committee members:
Prof. Katherine L. Tucker, Department of Biomedical and Nutritional Sciences, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Prof. Tammy M. Scott, Tufts University
Prof. Jong Soo Lee, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Massachusetts Lowell
Abstract
More than 16 million people in the United States live with cognitive impairment and an estimated 6.7 million adults aged above 65 years are living with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Medication use without appropriate indication, bowel dysfunction and gut dysbiosis are increasingly recognized as risk factors for cognitive impairment. Modifying these risk factors may slow the progression of mild cognitive impairment to AD. However, these associations are under-reported in minority groups including Puerto Ricans. The aims of this thesis were to identify the associations between medication use, bowel frequency changes, differences in gut microbial composition and cognitive function in a prospective cohort of Puerto Rican adults. This research adds to the growing evidence on the gut-brain axis and cognitive function, reports on modifiable risk factors associated with cognitive function and addresses cognitive health and disparities in an under-represented Puerto Rican population.
All interested students and faculty members are invited to attend.