Art of Memory for Cognitive Enhancement in the Monza Brain Health Service (MEMO)

March 13, 2026 updated by: University of Milano Bicocca

The goal of this pilot interventional clinical trial (non-drug study) is to learn whether memory techniques (mnemonics) can improve cognitive performance in adults over 50 years old with subjective cognitive decline who are followed at the Brain Health Service of Monza. The study will also evaluate the feasibility of this intervention and explore which biological or clinical factors may influence its effects.

The main questions it aims to answer are:

  • Do memory techniques improve overall cognitive performance, measured by a composite score from a neuropsychological test battery, after 6 months?
  • Are any cognitive benefits maintained over time (up to 9 months)?
  • Do biomarkers (such as blood p-tau217 levels, APOE genotype, or brain atrophy on MRI) influence the response to memory training?
  • Do memory techniques improve subjective cognitive complaints and performance on sensitive memory and cognitive-motor tests?

Researchers will compare a memory training group to a control group receiving information only to see whether structured mnemonic training leads to greater improvement in cognitive outcomes.

Participants will be randomly assigned to either the memory training group or the control group. Both groups will undergo complete cognitive assessments at baseline, 6 months, and 9 months.

If assigned to the training group, participants will attend two in-person group sessions to learn basic and advanced memory techniques, participate in two additional online group meetings, access online video materials, and practice memory exercises on a dedicated online platform for about 20 minutes per day.

If assigned to the control group, participants will receive general information about memory techniques but no structured training or platform access.

A total of 80 participants (40 per group) will be enrolled. This pilot study will help estimate the size of the effect and determine whether a larger future study is feasible.

Study Overview

Status

Active, not recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Actual)

80

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Locations

  • Italy
    • Lombardy
      • Monza, Lombardy, Italy, 20900
        • Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Adult
  • Older Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

  • Diagnosis of Subjective Cognitive Decline (SCD) according to Jessen et al., 2014 criteria
  • Evaluation at the Brain Health Service (BHS) of Monza
  • Prior brain MRI performed at Fondazione IRCCS San Gerardo dei Tintori
  • Prior blood sampling for measurement of biomarkers of cerebral amyloidosis
  • Age > 50 years
  • Adequate digital literacy (ability to access websites and participate in video calls)
  • Ability and willingness to provide written informed consent before study participation

Exclusion Criteria:

  • Severe visual and/or hearing impairment interfering with participation
  • Inability to participate in online training activities or attend in-person group sessions
  • Enrollment in another interventional study with an expected effect on cognition
  • Refusal or withdrawal of consent to participate

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Treatment
  • Allocation: Randomized
  • Interventional Model: Parallel Assignment
  • Masking: Single

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Experimental: Art of memory
The art of memory group will attend two in-person group sessions to learn basic and advanced memory techniques, participate in two additional online group meetings, access online video materials and practice memory exercises on a dedicated online platform for about 20 minutes per day
Other: Art of memory classes

The intervention will consist of:

  • two in-person and two online group sessions to learn basic and advanced memory techniques, taught by experienced memory athletes (Vanni de Luca, Andrea Muzii and Alessandro de Concini)
  • dedicated online video materials
  • self-paced exercises on the memoryleague.com website for about 20 minutes per day
Other Names:
  • Mnemonics
  • Memory techniques
Other: Control
The control group will receive general information about memory techniques but no structured training or platform access
Other: General information on art of memory
The control group will receive general information about memory techniques but no structured training or platform access

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Change from baseline to 6 months in composite neuropsychological test battery (NTB) z-score (range: - infinity, infinity; higher scores mean better outcomes)
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 months
Difference between the active mnemonic training group and the control group in the longitudinal change of the composite z-score derived from a standardized neuropsychological test battery (NTB). The composite score reflects global cognitive performance.
Baseline to 6 months

Secondary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Drop-out rate
Time Frame: From randomization to 9 months
Difference in study drop-out rates between the active mnemonic training group and the control group, used as a measure of feasibility and acceptability of the intervention.
From randomization to 9 months
Change from baseline to 9 months in composite NTB z-score (range: - infinity, infinity; higher scores mean better outcomes)
Time Frame: Baseline to 9 months
Difference between the active and control groups in the longitudinal change of the composite z-score derived from the neuropsychological test battery (NTB), evaluating the persistence of cognitive effects.
Baseline to 9 months
Influence of biological markers on cognitive change
Time Frame: Baseline biomarkers with cognitive change from baseline to 6 and 9 months
Association between baseline plasma p-tau217 levels, APOE genotype, and MRI-based brain atrophy measures with longitudinal change in composite NTB z-score, to explore predictors of response to mnemonic training.
Baseline biomarkers with cognitive change from baseline to 6 and 9 months
Change in Subjective Cognitive Decline Questionnaire (SCD-Q) scores (range: 0-24, higher scores mean worse outcomes)
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Difference between the active and control groups in longitudinal change in total and subscale scores of the Subjective Cognitive Decline Questionnaire (SCD-Q), assessing subjective cognitive complaints.
Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Change in face-name association test z-score (range: - infinity, infinity; higher scores mean better outcomes)
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Difference between the active and control groups in longitudinal change in the z-score of the face-name association test, which is sensitive to early cognitive changes in subjective cognitive decline.
Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Change in 1-week memory battery z-score (range: - infinity, infinity; higher scores mean better outcomes)
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Difference between the active and control groups in longitudinal change in the z-score of the 1-week delayed memory test, which is sensitive to early cognitive changes in subjective cognitive decline.
Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Change in cognitive-motor performance (Timed Up and Go test)
Time Frame: Baseline to 6 and 9 months
Difference between the active and control groups in longitudinal change in Timed Up and Go test performance, evaluating combined cognitive-motor function.
Baseline to 6 and 9 months

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of Milano Bicocca

Collaborators

Villa Beretta Rehabilitation Center

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Lucio Tremolizzo, MD, PhD, Università degli Studi di Milano-Bicocca

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Actual)

November 24, 2025

Primary Completion (Estimated)

June 1, 2026

Study Completion (Estimated)

September 1, 2026

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

March 2, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 13, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

March 18, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

March 18, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

March 13, 2026

Last Verified

March 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • MEMO

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

All anonimized raw data

IPD Sharing Time Frame

After completion of the study

IPD Sharing Access Criteria

Data will be shared upon reasonable request to the Principal Investigator

IPD Sharing Supporting Information Type

  • STUDY_PROTOCOL
  • ANALYTIC_CODE
  • CSR

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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