PhD student Eleanor Benford

A PhD student at the Alzheimer’s Society Doctoral Training Centre for Vascular and Immune contributors to dementia, Eleanor is asking:

Are infections associated with problems with thinking and memory post-stroke? 

Dementia is a devastating complication of stroke. The mechanisms underpinning this connection are not well understood, but we do know that our immune systems are involved in dementia.

Up to one third of stroke survivors will develop dementia within five years of their stroke. This research investigates the immune dysregulation post-stroke and its association with cognitive decline.

Tell us about your project

After having a stroke, the body can become more susceptible to infection, and these can be challenging to shift. The body’s natural response to an infection is to activate the immune system and protect itself. However, the number of one important type of cell in this process, known as B-cells, has been shown to fall after a stroke.

The role of B-cells is to create antibodies which are proteins that bind to antigens (foreign substances) and remove them. When these cells aren’t working as well as they should, the body can be vulnerable to infection.  

A big proportion of current research into infection and B-cells after a stroke has been experimental using animal models. This project is looking at the role of infection and B-cell immunity in people who have cognitive decline after a stroke.  

Using results from a previous study, I will aim to understand more about how B-cells function in people who have had a stroke.

Alongside memory and thinking tests, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) brain scans, this project will look at the function of B-cells in the blood.

Comparing the results of these tests will allow me to investigate the relationship between depleted B-cells and the health of blood vessels in the brain after a stroke and determine if these are associated with changes in memory and thinking skills.  

This understanding can then be used to inform future care for patients to protect cognition and influence treatment research.

What does it mean to you to be a part of Alzheimer's Society Doctoral Training Centre?

Having a connection with the other students in the DTC means we get to experience academic life together. Starting a PhD in a new institution in a new city can be incredibly daunting, not to mention attending your first conference and presenting your work.  

Being part of an Alzheimer's Society Doctoral Training Centre means being part of a community that supports and cheers each other on.

We can support each other through this, whilst also learning how to navigate academia from the supervisory teams.