CIDAR: Translational Research to Enhance Cognitive Control (TRECC)

University Of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles CA

Investigators

Linked publications & trials

Abstract

This application requests five years of support to establish a multidisciplinary research center at UCLA[unreadable] entitled "Translational Research to Enhance Cognitive Control (TRECC)" as a part of the NIMH Centers for[unreadable] Intervention Development and Applied Research (CIDAR) program. Utilizing our expertise in animal models,[unreadable] cognitive neuroscience, neuroimaging, neuropsychopharmacology, behavioral therapies, genetics, we will[unreadable] advance the science of treatment approaches for the cognitive deficits common to a large number of[unreadable] neuropsychiatric disorders afflicting children and adolescents. We will especially focus on pediatric disorders[unreadable] with prominent problems of cognitive control, particularly the often overlapping disorders of Attention-[unreadable] Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and Tourette Syndrome (TS), due to their unmet treatment needs,[unreadable] prevalence, morbidity and comorbidity, and shared pathophysiologic features. Ultimately, we believe our[unreadable] work will be relevant to an even larger group of children with other conditions, but who share the dimension[unreadable] of significant deficits in behavior regulation, cognitive processing, and judgement.[unreadable] The central theme of the UCLA CIDAR TRECC Center is the understanding and modeling of the[unreadable] mechanisms underlying cognitive deficits shared by a range of developmental psychopathologies[unreadable] leading to the development and testing of targeted and more efficacious treatments to enhance[unreadable] cognition in these conditions. Our focus is in direct response to the PA's call for the development of[unreadable] treatment approaches for clinical targets of illnesses which clearly influence morbidity but which are not[unreadable] sufficiently remediated by extant treatments. Impaired cognition in developmental psychopathologies clearly[unreadable] serves as a major determinant of functioning and long-term outcome. There is a great need to recognize[unreadable] cognitive enhancement in pediatric disorders as a primary treatment target and to develop and test new[unreadable] treatment approaches. If successful, such efforts hold the promise of significantly improving the long-term[unreadable] outcome of individuals with these disabilities. The UCLA CIDAR Center will approach this theme through the[unreadable] completion of four interacting multi-level studies in animals and humans, utilizing the resources developed[unreadable] and made available through three research cores supported by the CIDAR Center.[unreadable]