Arizona State University’s Edson College of Nursing and Health Innovation announced it had received a $4.5 million grant from the National Institute on Aging, a division of the National Institute of Health, to study the link between exercise and slowing down Alzheimer’s disease.

Fang Yu, Edson Chair in Dementia Translational Nursing Science, will lead the study. This new study builds off of Yu’s previous work, according to ASU News, which found that a six-month exercise program significantly reduced cognitive decline in comparison to the natural course of changes for Alzheimer’s dementia. Specifically, aerobic exercise is effective in reducing white matter hyperintensities progression, which is associated with cognitive decline and the development of dementia. Yu and her team will conduct the first-ever sequential, multiple assignment, randomized trial, or SMART, for Alzheimer’s disease. This Phase 2 trial will focus specifically on determining which exercises will best improve aerobic fitness in older adults with early stage Alzheimer’s disease, according to ASU News.

“Alzheimer’s is a complex disease with many factors contributing to it, which is part of the reason we haven’t found a single cure. Recently though, we’ve found that modifying lifestyle factors may contribute to slowing the progression of the disease,” Yu said.

The study will recruit more than 100 participants in Arizona to enroll in the study. They’re looking for people who are 65 and older, who have noticed changes in their memory and have someone who knows them to serve as their study partner.

“I think this grant shows what Professor Yu and her team are doing is really cutting edge. This research could impact millions of people, potentially giving them some hope of relief from a terrible disease that steals their very essence. I’m looking forward to the findings and seeing how they develop into real-world interventions,” said Edson College Dean Judith Karshmer.