The National Institute on Aging has awarded the University of Florida-led 1Florida Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center a five-year, $22.3 million grant renewal to speed up discoveries in Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

The centre brings together researchers from UF, the University of Miami, Mount Sinai Medical Center and Florida International University to study Alzheimer’s across diverse populations, including Hispanics and Blacks, who are at elevated risk but historically underrepresented in clinical research.

Researchers say the funding will support early detection work, biomarker development and clinical trials aimed at slowing or preventing the disease. UF’s David Vaillancourt will play a key scientific leadership role in the renewed centre.

Alzheimer’s affects millions of Americans and has no cure. The centre is one of more than 35 NIA-funded research centres nationwide working on the disease; families can consult their doctors or clinical-trial registries about participation.

Alzheimer’s disease affects an estimated 7 million Americans, a number expected to grow as the population ages. With few treatments that meaningfully slow the disease, research centres are racing to identify reliable early biomarkers that could enable prevention trials years before symptoms appear.