The Tau Consortium™ is a collaborative research program that is managed and funded by the Rainwater Charitable Foundation (RCF). We commission world-class research and drug discovery programs to treat and prevent primary tauopathies. Initially conceived with the founding of the Tau Consortium in 2009, the Tau Consortium investigators meeting (TCIM) was convened with the goal of bringing together the brightest scientific minds for a multiday meeting that is truly unique in the field. While science can often be a fiercely competitive and isolated world, the TCIM is an opportunity for researchers, consultants, and advisors to truly collaborate and learn from each other. From sharing unpublished and confidential findings to discussing plans for clinical trials, the TCIM encourages scientists to challenge and support each other.

In September 2024, we convened at the Four Seasons Hotel in Denver for a meeting that brought together existing research teams and ignited new collaborations. We were thrilled to start the meeting with our patient-focused spotlight on ReD-Lat, a multi-partner consortium to expand dementia research in Latin America. Katherine Possin, PhD (University of California San Francisco) is part of the leadership team of international scientists guiding an effort to improve dementia characterization and identify novel inroads to treat neurodegeneration in diverse and underserved populations. Dr. Possin’s team is collecting neuroimaging, genomic, and behavioral data on many thousands of individuals from Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, Peru, and the United States, to broaden understanding of the genetic and environmental setting of frontotemporal dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease around the world. The project constitutes an unprecedented opportunity to foster regional constructive collaboration and multidisciplinary research to understand dementia in diverse and underserved populations around the world.

We were fortunate to have both Juliana Acosta-Uribe, MD, PhD (University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA, USA and the Grupo de Neurociencias de Antioquia, Universidad de Antioquia, Medellin, Medellin, Colombia) and documentary photographer Alex Kornhuber (Global Brain Health Institute) give the opening patient spotlight talk featuring stories from South America. Dr. Acosta-Uribe provided her perspectives and inspirational experiences as a clinical scientist  studying population genetics of neurodegenerative disorders in Columbia. And the room was still in awe of the powerful images and narration from Alex Kornhuber who is documenting the lived experiences of dementia patients, their families, and the impact on their communities. Following the talks, we had a vibrant discussion about the importance of adopting a global perspective towards dementia research.

The following two-and-a-half days of meetings focused on a wide variety of topics including the launch of an RCF-led initiative for a new 4R-tau PET ligand entering the clinic, mechanisms of primary tauopathies, spotlights on longitudinal studies, biomarkers, tauopathy clinical trials, and the latest from our drug discovery pipeline.  Like all other TCIMs, the ending of the meeting was bittersweet. There is always a renewed enthusiasm towards our mission while we are all saddened with saying goodbye until next time to our colleagues and collaborators who have become good friends over the years.