About

Lauren M Massimo is an Assistant Professor of Neurology at the University of Pennsylvania's Perelman School of Medicine. She is affiliated with the Neuroscience graduate group and is part of the faculty within the Biomedical Graduate Studies. Her contact email is lmassimo@nursing.upenn.edu. The available information does not include specific details about her research focus, background, or key contributions.

Research topics

• Medicine
• Neuroscience
• Biology
• Chemistry
• Genetics
• Psychology
• Pathology
• Physical medicine and rehabilitation
• Molecular biology
• Cell biology
• Internal medicine

Selected publications

• A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Change in Church Activity with Cognitive, Functional, and Mental Health among Black and White Older Adults

  Dementia and Geriatric Cognitive Disorders Extra · 2026-02-27

  articleOpen access

  Introduction: Stable religious participation may have beneficial contributions to cognitive and mental health; however, less is known about how changes in religious participation, such as disengagement or increased engagement in church activities, affect these health outcomes and whether there are differences between racial groups. This study aimed to examine the association between changes in church activity and cognitive, functional, and mental health in older adults, and explore differences by race. Methods: Using data from the University of Pennsylvania Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center Aging Brain Cohort in 2021–2022, we examined associations between self-reported change in church activity with cognitive and functional health (Global Clinical Dementia Score [CDR] and Total CDR) and neuropsychiatric symptoms (Neuropsychiatric Inventory) in cognitively normal older adults (n = 158). We used multivariable regression analysis, controlling for self-reported age, sex, education, and social interaction, to examine differences between individuals who identified as either Black or White. Results: Controlling for covariates, Black participants who reported substantially more or less church activity in the last year had lower cognition and function (Global CDR, β = 0.19, 95% CI: [0.04, 0.34], p < 0.05) and Total CDR (β = 0.30, 95% CI: [0.01, 0.58], p = 0.042), and more neuropsychiatric symptoms (β = 0.63, 95% CI: [0.02, 1.24], p < 0.045). No significance was found in White older adults. Black older adults reporting major changes in church activity experienced lower cognitive, functional, and mental health. Conclusion: To explore if church activity changes could be an early sign of cognitive, functional, and mental health decline, longitudinal studies are needed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Continuous At-Home Monitoring of Nighttime Bed Behavior in Frontotemporal Dementia

  Neurology Open Access · 2026-02-18

  articleOpen access

  Background and Objectives: Sleep and circadian disturbances are common yet understudied in frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Advances in non-invasive digital monitoring technology enable capture of real-time objective nighttime behaviors in naturalistic settings. We examined feasibility and utility of an unobtrusive, under-the-mattress sensor to monitor long-term bed behaviors in a sample of adults with FTD and their study partners. Methods: Movement Monitor. Metrics were derived from each session in bed: duration in bed, time of bed-entry/exit, number of tosses/turns, and number of bed-exits. Bivariate relationships between baseline bed behaviors (aggregated across the first 30 days) and clinical characteristics (FTD vs. control; clinical dementia rating) were tested. Linear mixed-effects regressions examined longitudinal associations between baseline clinical severity and bed behaviors over time. To examine differential seasonal shifts in nightly bed behaviors, Fourier basis functions modeled nightly duration in bed over a full calendar year separately by clinical severity groups (controls vs. mild FTD vs. moderate-to-severe FTD). Results: <0.001). Discussion: Findings demonstrate the feasibility of long-term, non-invasive nighttime behavior monitoring using bed sensors, highlighting their utility to monitor disease progression in FTD with potential to detect person-specific changes and assess treatment effects. Further research is needed to explore underlying mechanisms of sleep disturbances in FTD and develop targeted interventions to improve sleep and subsequent quality of life for individuals with FTD.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Neurological Disorders

  2025-10-01

  book-chapter1st authorCorresponding

  Abstract Neurological disorders are common across the healthcare system. They are often life-threatening and can have significant impacts on function and well-being. This chapter will provide an overview of six neurological disorders with high palliative care needs: amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease, corticobasal syndrome, progressive supranuclear palsy, Huntington’s disease, and multiple sclerosis. Next, this chapter outlines common care needs, serious illness communication, mobility impairment, and speech and swallowing dysfunction, which occur across these disorders. Finally, this chapter reviews palliative interventions that nurses can employ to reduce suffering and increase quality of life for people living with neurological disorders and their caregivers.

  PublisherDOI

• Racial/ethnic differences in neuropsychological test performance in frontotemporal degeneration

  Alzheimer s & Dementia Diagnosis Assessment & Disease Monitoring · 2025-10-01

  articleOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  Abstract BACKGROUND Racial and/or ethnic differences in neuropsychological test performance are understudied in frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) but their identification is critical to identifying ways to improve care of representative FTD populations. METHODS Differences in cognitive scores between Black ( n = 56) and Hispanic ( n = 76) relative to White ( n = 2281) participants and the likelihood of impairment status in cognitive test performance were evaluated. RESULTS Minoritized individuals had lower scores and/or greater likelihood of impairment on measures of lexical retrieval, processing speed, cognitive flexibility, and working memory but not global cognition, verbal recall, attention, and category fluency. Addition of severity, age ( M = 65.18), sex (40% female), education ( M = 15.62), and vascular comorbidities attenuated group differences. DISCUSSION Racial/ethnic differences on neuropsychological tests used in diagnosis and monitoring of FTD were substantially attenuated when accounting for potential contributing factors. To address these differences in FTD, future efforts must increase representative research participation of patients and understand social determinants of health. Highlights Racially/ethnically minoritized individuals with frontotemporal dementia are severely underrepresented in the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center dataset Racially/ethnically minoritized individuals with frontotemporal dementia obtained lower scores and greater likelihood of impairment on common neuropsychological tests The effect of racial/ethnic group on neuropsychological test scores was substantially attenuated when adjusting for disease severity, education level, sex, and age

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• The association of spirituality and memory in older Black and White U.S. Adults

  Journal of Religion Spirituality & Aging · 2025-11-18

  article
  PublisherDOI

• “I'm his brain”: A qualitative study of care partners supporting the inner strength of persons living with mild cognitive impairment

  Alzheimer s & Dementia · 2025-05-01

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Despite the need, care partners of persons living with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) use supportive services less. The unique needs of care partners to persons living with MCI are not well described. This study explores how care partners support the inner strength of persons newly diagnosed with MCI. METHODS: Nine dyads of persons living with MCI and their care partners completed semi-structured interviews, analyzed according to the Listening Guide methodology. RESULTS: Care partners described supporting inner strengths of persons living with MCI by carrying the cognitive load and being reliable. Reconceptualizing identity was foundational. Across themes, care partners needed simultaneous support for themselves. DISCUSSION: This study represents the perspectives of a well-defined group of care partners to persons living with MCI. Eliciting the perspectives of underrepresented care partners and equitable access to MCI diagnosis are essential for future research. Dyadic supportive services tailored for MCI using a strengths-based approach are needed. HIGHLIGHTS: Care partners to persons living with mild cognitive impairment (MCI) are unique. Care partners support inner strength of persons living with MCI and need simultaneous support. Care partners reconceptualize their identities, are reliable, and carry cognitive load. Methods for eliciting perspectives of underrepresented care partners are needed. Supportive services tailored for MCI using a strengths-based approach are needed.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Investigation of risk of Alzheimer’s disease diagnosis and survival based on variation to life experiences used to operationalize cognitive reserve

  Journal of Alzheimer s Disease · 2025-03-26 · 1 citations

  articleOpen access

  BackgroundAlzheimer's disease dementia (AD) is a debilitating progressive neurodegenerative disease. Life experiences are hypothesized to build cognitive reserve (CR), a theoretical construct associated with delayed onset of AD symptoms. While CR is a key moderator of cognitive decline, operationalization of CR is varied resulting in inconsistencies within the literature.ObjectiveThis study explored the relationship between life experiences used as proxies of CR and risk of AD diagnosis and death following diagnosis.MethodsWe explored results based on 30 different published CR operationalizations, including two standardized questionnaires and an investigator-developed lifecourse indicator. Using data from the Memory and Aging Project, we applied Cox proportional hazard models to evaluate the impact of operationalization on time to outcomes.ResultsHazard ratios, indicating instantaneous risk of AD or death for a standard deviation increase in the CR proxy utilized as a predictor, ranged from 0.80-1.40 for AD diagnosis and 0.80-1.29 for death following diagnosis. Among nine predictors that showed a significant reduction in risk of AD, there was a decrease of between 12% and 20%. Two predictors were associated with reduced risk of death, with 13%-20% reduction, while three predictors were associated with 18%-22% heightened risk of death following diagnosis.ConclusionsModel results were highly sensitive to CR operationalization. Based on the variation in results, composite measures that incorporate multiple lifecourse variables may still be the most comprehensive and faithful representation of CR. Attention to methodology and refining of measurement are needed to make use of CR and promote healthy aging.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Racial/Ethnic Differences in Neuropsychological Test Performance in Frontotemporal Degeneration

  medRxiv · 2025-01-06

  preprintOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  BACKGROUND: Racial and/or ethnic differences in neuropsychological test performance are understudied in frontotemporal degeneration (FTD) but their identification is critical to identifying ways to improve care of representative FTD populations. METHODS: Differences in cognitive scores between Black and Hispanic relative to White participants were assessed with the sequential addition of potential contributing factors. Group differences in the likelihood of impairment status in cognitive test performance were also evaluated. RESULTS: Minoritized individuals had lower scores and/or greater likelihood of impairment on measures of lexical retrieval, processing speed, cognitive flexibility, and working memory but not global cognition, verbal recall, attention, and category fluency. Addition of factors attenuated group differences. DISCUSSION: Racial/ethnic differences on neuropsychological tests used in diagnosis and monitoring of FTD were substantially attenuated when accounting for potential contributing factors. To address these differences in FTD, future efforts must increase representative research participation of patients and understand social determinants of health.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Higher neighborhood deprivation is associated with accelerated disease progression in behavioral-variant frontotemporal degeneration

  medRxiv · 2025-05-13

  preprintOpen accessSenior authorCorresponding

  INTRODUCTION: Neighborhood deprivation is associated with shorter survival, cognitive impairment and neurodegeneration in aging and Alzheimer's disease. However, the association of neighborhood deprivation with disease progression in behavioral-variant frontotemporal degeneration (bvFTD) is unknown. METHODS: We examined associations between tertiles of neighborhood deprivation, using the Area Deprivation Index (ADI), and survival in 311 individuals clinically diagnosed with bvFTD from the Penn FTD Center. In a subset (n=161) with complete baseline data across measures of global cognition, executive function, and language, we examined the association of ADI with longitudinal change. RESULTS: Compared to adults living in the least deprived neighborhoods, those living in the most deprived neighborhoods showed shorter survival after symptom onset and faster decline in global cognition, executive and language functions, independent of genetic risk. DISCUSSION: Living in more deprived neighborhoods was associated with an accelerated disease course in bvFTD, highlighting an important socioeconomic disparity in disease prognosis.

  PublisherOA PDFDOI

• Disparate and shared transcriptomic signatures associated with cortical atrophy in genetic behavioral variant frontotemporal degeneration

  Molecular Neurodegeneration · 2025-02-07 · 2 citations

  articleOpen access

  BACKGROUND: Cortical atrophy is a common manifestation in behavioral variant frontotemporal degeneration (bvFTD), exhibiting spatial heterogeneity across various genetic subgroups, which may be driven by distinct biological mechanisms. METHODS: We employed an integrative imaging transcriptomics approach to identify both disparate and shared transcriptomic signatures associated with cortical thickness in bvFTD with C9orf72 repeat expansions or pathogenic variants in GRN or MAPT. Functional enrichment analyses were conducted on each gene list significantly associated with cortical thickness. Additionally, we mapped neurotransmitter receptor/transporter density maps to the cortical thickness maps, to uncover different correlation patterns for each genetic form. Furthermore, we examined whether the identified genes were enriched for pathology-related genes by using previously identified genes linked to TDP-43 positive neurons and genes associated with tau pathology. RESULTS: For each genetic form of bvFTD, we identified cortical thickness signatures and gene sets associated with them. The cortical thickness associated genes for GRN-bvFTD were significantly involved in neurotransmitter system and circadian entrainment. The different patterns of spatial correlations between synaptic density and cortical thinning, further confirmed the critical role of neurotransmission and synaptic signaling in shaping brain structure, especially in the GRN-bvFTD group. Furthermore, we observed significant overlap between genes linked to TDP-43 pathology and the gene sets associated with cortical thickness in C9orf72-bvFTD and GRN-bvFTD but not the MAPT-bvFTD group providing specificity for our associations. C9orf72-bvFTD and GRN-bvFTD also shared genes displaying consistent directionality, with those exhibiting either positive or negative correlations with cortical thickness in C9orf72-bvFTD showing the same direction (positive or negative) in GRN-bvFTD. MAPT-bvFTD displayed more pronounced differences in transcriptomic signatures compared to the other two genetic forms. The genes that exhibited significantly positive or negative correlations with cortical thickness in MAPT-bvFTD showed opposing directionality in C9orf72-bvFTD and GRN-bvFTD. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, this integrative transcriptomic approach identified several new shared and disparate genes associated with regional vulnerability with increased biological interpretation including overlap with synaptic density maps and pathologically-specific gene expression. These findings illuminated the intricate molecular underpinnings contributing to the heterogeneous nature of disease distribution in bvFTD with distinct genetic backgrounds.

  PublisherDOI

Recent grants

• Cognitive and Neural Moderators of Longitudinal Decline in Frontotemporal Degeneration

  NIH · $192k · 2016–2018

• Cognitive and Neural Moderators of Longitudinal Decline in Frontotemporal Degeneration

  NIH · $747k · 2016–2022

• The Neural Basis of Apathy in Frontotemporal Degeneration: A Longitudinal Study

  NIH · $144k · 2014–2017

• Administrative Core

  NIH · $31.1M · 2020–2030

• The Cognitive and Neural Basis of Apathy in Frontotemporal Degeneration

  NIH · $91k · 2012–2014

Frequent coauthors

• Murray Grossman

  78 shared

• Corey T. McMillan

  University of Pennsylvania

  68 shared

• David J. Irwin

  University of Pennsylvania

  49 shared

• Sharon X. Xie

  32 shared

• Katya Rascovsky

  University of Pennsylvania

  28 shared

• John Q. Trojanowski

  University of Pennsylvania

  24 shared

• Anjan Chatterjee

  Insmed (United States)

  22 shared

• Ann Kolanowski

  20 shared