According to Henrie (2006), international and cross-cultural comparative studies of Alzheimer Disease (AD) offer significant advantages in elucidating risk factors for the disease by providing a wider diversity of environmental exposures as well as greater genetic diversity than do studies confined to a single ethnic group in a developed country.

A principal investigator, Dr. Samantha Blum, sought to replicate this study by investigating different populations from diverse geographic locations in developing countries (Hmong from Laos, Kikuyu from Kenya, and the Kaska tribe from the Yukon). This study, co-authored with a graduate student, was accepted and published by a well-known Medical Anthropology journal.