The Sensational project
By 2050, nearly one in ten people over the age of 65 will be living with Alzheimer’s disease. At a time when new treatments are on the verge of coming onto the market, early diagnosis that is accessible to as many people as possible is crucial. The SENSATIONAL project aims to offer an approach based on a space navigation video game (Sea Hero Quest) and a simple blood test.
This protocol would enable the measurement of spatial behaviour, oculomotor function (eye-tracking) and blood biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease in healthy individuals and those with Alzheimer’s disease.
We will use the Sea Hero Quest database (4 million players with diverse socio-demographic profiles) to develop machine learning algorithms capable of identifying pathological aspects in participants’ spatial behaviour in a highly personalised manner. The diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease at a very early or even pre-clinical stage raises numerous ethical questions, which will be addressed in a specific component of this project.
We are committed to a predictive and participatory approach to medicine, whilst integrating several complementary disciplines: computer science, cognitive science, biology, clinical research and healthcare ethics.
Les porteurs · euses :
Antoine COUTROT
Antoine COUTROT is a researcher at the CNRS. He works at the intersection of cognitive science, signal processing, and computational modeling. He worked on Sea Hero Quest and continues to develop this exciting project, which combines cognitive science, clinical science, and computational modeling.
Isabelle QUADRIO
Isabelle QUADRIO is a medical biologist and head of the laboratory for the diagnosis of degenerative diseases at CHU de Lyon, which has been designated as a reference laboratory in France for the measurement of biomarkers of neurodegenerative diseases. She contributes to the validation and development of new markers for these diseases using various biological fluids, notably cerebrospinal fluid and, more recently, thanks to technical advances, blood.
Antoine GARNIER-CRUSSARD
Antoine GARNIER-CRUSSARD is a geriatrician at the Centre Mémoire Ressources Recherche des Hospices Civils de Lyon. He specialises in Alzheimer’s disease and related conditions, and is involved in the early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease using cognitive assessment tools and biomarkers.
Catherine DEKEUWER
Catherine DEKEUWER she is an Associate Professor of Contemporary Ethics at Université de Lyon 3 Jean Moulin. Her research focuses on ethical issues raised by disease prediction (particularly genetic diseases).
Given that Alzheimer’s disease is complex and multifactorial, is it beneficial to predict it in every situation? How will healthy individuals process and cope with information regarding the risk of a condition like Alzheimer’s? Participation in SENSATIONAL will enable an in-depth examination of the ethical issues surrounding Alzheimer’s screening and prediction, starting from the initial stages of research.
