News
March 2019
Scientific papers added to website
A list of the scientific papers published by Silver Santé Study researchers as part of the study has been uploaded to the project website.
The new page – “Project Publications” – lists five scientific papers, three published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research and clinical interventions, one in Alzheimer’s Research & Therapy and a fifth which has been accepted for publication in Current Opinion in Psychology. Links to each paper are included.
More papers will be added as they are accepted for publication so check back regularly to see our latest work. Click here to visit the page.
The Silver Santé Study’s expert researchers at the 2019 annual consortium meeting in Liège.
Follow-up tests added to Age-Well trial
Following the completion of the first wave of Silver Santé Study’s Age-Well clinical trial, the volunteers have agreed to take part in additional follow-up tests at 21 months. This is to further strengthen validation of the trial by studying whether the effects of mental training techniques persist over time.
Over the last 18 months, the group of 42 older adults aged 65+ has been helping our expert researchers learn more about mental health & well-being in the ageing population. After taking part in a series of baseline tests, each volunteer was randomly assigned to one of three groups – an English language course, a meditation course, or a control group in which participants made no changes to their lifestyle.
Volunteers in Wave 2 will undertake their end of intervention visits in May 2019, and the Wave 3 volunteers have recently finished the nine-month visit.
Blood tests, neuroimaging scans and questionnaires have been used by our expert researchers to assess the impact of the mental training techniques on the brain. The volunteers’ lifestyle habits – such as sleep, diet, physical exercise and emotions – have also been monitored.
The results of the Age-Well trial are expected to be released in 2020.
Age-Well volunteers taking part in an English learning class at the University of Caen, France.
February 2019
Public conference – Brain health across the lifespan
Are you interested in hearing from some of Europe’s leading brain health experts on mental health and well-being?
Then take a look at the programme for our “Brain health across the lifespan” public conference aimed at healthcare specialists, researchers, patient groups, professional societies and patients with an interest in brain health. Jointly organised by the EU-funded Silver Santé Study and Lifebrain Project as well as the German Brain Council, the event will take place in Berlin on Wednesday 6th November and will cover topics such as promoting healthy brain ageing, styles of thinking and how they affect dementia risk, and whether video gaming affects the brain.
Silver Santé Study Project Coordinator and keynote speaker at the conference, Dr Gaël Chételat, said: “As an EU-funded project, we are delighted to have this opportunity to share our work directly with individuals and organisations with an interest in brain health and we would urge anyone with an interest in this field to attend.
“Several of our senior Silver Santé researchers will be speaking at the conference, alongside experts from Lifebrain and the German Brain Council and other invited speakers, and we look forward to contributing to interesting discussions about mental health and well-being on the day.”
Experts from the Silver Santé Study, Lifebrain and the German Brain Council will discuss the latest experimental approaches and evidence from these two major European research consortia regarding the impact of socioeconomic factors, physical activity, nutrition, and mental training on cognitive function, mental health, and well-being throughout life.
These results will also be explored in light of prevention and intervention strategies for brain disorders. The conference will gather European speakers from different research areas including psychology, neurology, neuroimaging, psychiatry, genetics, epidemiology, molecular biology, and medicine. Click here to download the full conference programme.
Anyone wishing to attend the conference must register via our Eventbrite page before 1st October 2019. A maximum of 180 places are available on a first come, first served basis.
January 2019
Interested in joining the Silver Santé team?
2 year Post-doc Position (Neuroimaging and Psychology)
at the University of Geneva
In the context of the European project “Medit-Ageing – investigating the impact of
meditation training on mental health and well-being in the ageing population”, the Swiss
Center for Affective Sciences (University of Geneva) offers a post-doc position in the
worpackage “Emotion” (Workpackage leader: Dr. Olga Klimecki, deputy: Prof. Dr. Patrik
Vuilleumier).
Project Summary
This project studies the role that emotions and their malleability play in healthy ageing. To
this end, we collect and analyze self-report measures, measures of social behaviour,
cognitive tests and functional magnetic resonance imaging data. We also closely
collaborate with our partner institutions in Caen and Lyon (France), London (UK),
Cologne (Germany), and Barcelona (Spain).
For more information, please visit: https://www.unige.ch/cisa/index.php?cID=1253
About our Center
The Swiss Center for Affective Sciences (director: Prof. David Sander) is one of the first
research centers worldwide dedicated to the interdisciplinary study of emotions and their
effects on human behavior and society.
Candidates
We invite applications from outstanding candidates with experience in analyzing and
publishing emotion-related data in the fields of psychology and neuroimaging.
Applications will be considered until the position is filled.
If you are interested, please e-mail your letter of motivation, your CV, your publications,
and the full contact details of two referees to olga.klimecki@unige.ch
December 2018
Age Well language volunteers go on field trip to Jersey
SCD Well clinical trial team prepares to analyse data
October 2018
Project partners get a taste of meditation intervention techniques
July 2018
‘Magical’ Silver Santé workshop attracts great interest at high-profile international science forum
June 2018
Silver Santé to host session at Europe’s biggest interdisciplinary science event
Major French TV documentary features Silver Santé research
March 2018
Silver Santé Study features on French national TV programme
New video showcases Silver Santé Study work and team
Clinical trials on course for success
December 2017
Partners gather for annual consortium meeting in Barcelona
October 2017
Pilot study shows meditation may help cut Alzheimer’s risk
Play a vital role in improving mental health, urge Silver Santé team
Memory clinic patients recruited for next phase of four-centre clinical trial
June 2017
Volunteers help attract new recruits for Caen clinical trial
Trial investigating benefits of mental training techniques on memory clinic patients well underway
March 2017
Silver Sante Study nominated for SilverEco 2017 Award
Trial groups announced to Caen volunteers
December 2016
Hundreds volunteer to take part in Age-Well Study
Silver Santé Study partners gather for General Assembly in Bonn
Memory clinic patient trials due to begin in March 2017
September 2016
Silver Santé researchers meet with Dalai Lama
Volunteers in Caen, France, invited to local meetings
Preparations for further trials on course
June 2016
Huge turnout for 1st Public Conference
May 2016
You can also view official press releases and our e-newsletters.
And read ‘Points of View’ from our expert researchers.
