Walter Swardfager

Dr. Swardfager’s research focuses on symptoms of depression and cognitive dysfunction, particularly in later life. On-going studies explore the neuroimmunological intersection between psychiatric and metabolic diseases as an avenue to discover biomarkers, elucidate vulnerability factors and implicate new treatments. Inflammatory mechanisms by which cardiopulmonary fitness and exercise interventions counteract neurodegenerative processes are of particular interest.

Disease areas of focus include depression, Type 2 diabetes, Alzheimer’s disease and stroke, which often occur together with disastrous consequences. Techniques used include genomics, neuroimaging, serum biomarkers, and neuropsychiatric assessments. The lab also uses public health records to examine the impact of comorbid conditions (e.g. depression and diabetes) on long-term health outcomes in those with chronic diseases.

Current studies include:

• improving effectiveness of exercise interventions for people with Type 2 diabetes
• understanding genetic vulnerability to cerebral white matter disease in normal aging and neurodegenerative disorders
• using metabolic changes in depressive episodes as biomarkers to implicate new avenues for treatment
• mitigating the impact of diabetes and depression on functional and cognitive recovery from stroke