Education
PhD (Georgia); MSc (Georgia); BA (Emory)
Research Interests
Behavioral science; cognition; statistics; executive function; rehabilitation medicine; cognitive neuroscience; lifespan development
Biography
John R. Best completed his PhD at the University of Georgia, and has since completed postdoctoral fellowships at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of British Columbia. Most recently, Dr. Best was a Research Associate at the University of British Columbia in the Aging, Mobility, and Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory. Dr. Best’s research interests fall within the emerging, interdisciplinary field of health neuroscience, which aims to understand how the brain both affects and is affected by physical health.
The aim of this work is to:
- Gain a better understanding the modifiable risk factors for cognitive impairment and dementia.
- Identify the role of neurocognition, both independently and in interaction with environmental and social factors and incentives, in determining adherence to positive health behaviours.
- Design lifestyle interventions that reduce dementia risk and manage its progression.
This work has been supported by fellowships from the US National Institutes of Health, the Michael Smith Foundation for Health Research, and the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.
Selected Grants
Grants
Contract/Grant: Grant Awarded: 2023 Period: 2023 - 2024
Project Title: Cognitive Aging in Middle and Older-Aged Canadians: Consideration of Genetic Risk, Modifiable Factors and Biological Sex
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research CLSA Grant Type: Catalyst Grant Total: $68,970
Involvement: Principal Investigator
Contract/Grant: Grant Awarded: 2020 Period: 2020 - 2023
Project Title: Cognitive Aging in Canadian Women and Men: An Exploration of Environmental Contributors and Interactions with Individual Factors
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research Type: Operating Grant Total: $74,240
Involvement: Principal Investigator
Contract/Grant: Grant Awarded: 2020 Period: 2020 - 2022
Project Title: Impact of Social Determinants of Mental Health on Child and Parent Risk, Resilience and Support Access in the COVID-19 Era: A Nested Mixed-Methods Study of Short and Long-Term Outcomes
Funding: Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Michael Smith Health Research BC Type: Operating Grant Total: $148,010 Involvement: Co-Investigator
Contract/Grant: Grant Awarded: 2020 Period: 2020 - 2021
Project Title: Quantitative Isotype Profiling and Dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 Infections: Next Generation Serology
Funding: Michael Smith Health Research BC Type: Michael Smith Health Research BC COVID-19 Research Response Total: $124,000 Involvement: Co-Investigator
Selected Publications
Articles
- Balbim, G. M., Falck, R. S., Barha, C. K., Tai, D., Best, J. R., Hajj-Boutros, G., Madden, K., & Liu-Ambrose, T. (2024). Exercise counter the negative impact of bed rest on executive functions in middle-aged and older adults: A proof-of-concept randomized controlled trial. Maturitas, 179, 107869. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.maturitas.2023.107869.
- Falck, R. S., Hsu, C. L., Best, J. R., Boa Sorte Silva, N. C., Hall, P. A., Li, L. C., & Liu-Ambrose, T. (2024). It’s all in your head: Cross-sectional and longitudinal neural predictors of physical activity and sedentary behaviour from a six-month randomized controlled trial. Scientific Reports, 14, 919. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-48715-z.
- Hopper, S., Grady, A., Best, J. R., & Stinchcombe, A. (2024). Bidirectional associations between memory and depression moderated by sex and age: Findings from the CLSA. Archives of Gerontology and Geriatrics, 116, 105154. doi: 10.1016/j.archger.2023.105154.
- Hopper, S., Wister, A., Cosco, T., & Best, J. R. (2024). Social isolation, physical activity, and subsequent changes in cognition among middle- and older-aged adults: Results from the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. Psychosomatic Medicine, 86, 107-115. doi: 10.1097/PSY.0000000000001271.
- Patel, K. J., Yang, D., Best, J. R., Chambers, C., Lee, P. E., Henri-Bhargava, A., Funnell, C. R., Foti, D. J., Feldman, H. H., Pettersen, J. A., Nygaard, H. B., Hsiung, G-Y. R., & DeMarco, M. L. (2024). Clinical value of Alzheimer’s disease biomarker testing. Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions, 10, e12464. doi: 10.1002/trc2.12464
- Patel, K. J., Yang, D., Feldman, H. H., Hsiung, G-Y. R., Nygaard, H. B., Best, J. R., Dwosh, E., Robillard, J. M., & DeMarco, M. L. (2024). Personal value of Alzheimer’s disease biomarker testing and result disclosure from the patient and care partner perspective. Alzheimer’s & Dementia: Translational Research & Clinical Interventions, 10, e12463. doi: 10.1002/trc2.12463.
- Adjetey, C., Davis, J. C., Falck, R. S., Best, J. R., Dao, E., Bennett, K., Tai, D., McGuire, K., Eng, J. J., Hsiung, G. Y. R., Middleton, L. E., Hall, P. A., Sakakibara, B., & Liu-Ambrose, T. (2023). An economic evaluation of exercise or cognitive and social enrichment activities to promote cognition in older adults with chronic stroke. JAMA Network Open, 6, e2345687. doi: 10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2023.45687.
- Hopper, S., Best, J., Wister, A., & Cosco, T. (2023). Contributors to mental health resilience in middle-aged and older adults: An analysis of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging. International Psychogeriatrics. 1-10. https://doi:10.1017/S1041610223000224.
- Best, J. R., Wang, M., Lee, T., Russell, J. A. & DeMarco, M. ., on behalf of the ARBs CORONA I investigators (2022). Early increases in anti-SARS-CoV-2 antibody isotypes associated with organ dysfunction and mortality in patients hospitalized with COVID-19. Intensive Care Medicine, 48, 616-618.
- Best, J. R., Gan, D. R. Y., Wister, A. V., & Cosco, T. D. (2021). Age and sex trends in depressive symptoms across middle and adulthood: Comparison of the Canadian Longitudinal Study on Aging to American and European cohorts. Journal of Affective Disorders, 295, 1169-1176.
- Best, J. R., Falck, R. S., Landry, G. J., & Liu‐Ambrose, T. (2019). Analysis of dynamic, bidirectional associations in older adult physical activity and sleep quality. Journal of sleep research, 28(4), e12769.
- Best, J. R., Liu-Ambrose, T., Metti, A. L., Rosso, A. L., Satterfield, S., Studenski, S., ... & Health, Aging and Body Composition Study. (2018). Longitudinal associations between walking speed and amount of self-reported time spent walking over a 9-year period in older women and men. The Journals of Gerontology: Series A, 73(9), 1265-1271.
- Best, J. R., Rosano, C., Aizenstein, H. J., Tian, Q., Boudreau, R. M., Ayonayon, H. N., Satterfield, S., Simonsick, E. M., Studenski, S., Yaffe, K., & Liu-Ambrose, T., for the Health Aging, and Body Composition Study. (2017). Long-term changes in physical activity and subsequent structural brain changes in older adults. Neurobiology of Aging, 57, 153-161.
- Best, J. R., Liu-Ambrose, T., Boudreau, R. M., Ayonayon, H. N., Satterfield, S., Simonsick, E. M., Studenski, S., Yaffe, K., Newman, A. B., & Rosano, C., for the Health Aging, and Body Composition Study. (2016). An evaluation of the longitudinal, bidirectional associations between gait speed and cognition in older women and men. Journals of Gerontology Series A: Biological Sciences and Medical Sciences, 71, 1616-1623.
- Best, J. R., Davis, J. C., & Liu-Ambrose, T. (2015). Longitudinal Analysis of Physical Performance, Functional Status, Physical Activity, and Mood in Relation to Executive Function in Older Adults Who Fall. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 63, 1112-1120.