Pensioners are being invited to take part in a multimillion-pound dementia study at a new complex dedicated to the disease.

Around 250 healthy volunteers over the age of 65 are being sought for the long-term project.

The research was announced on Wednesday at the opening of Edinburgh's University's Centre for Dementia Prevention, attended by HRH The Princess Royal, its chancellor.

Volunteers will be invited to take part in detailed memory tests to monitor their brain function.

Scientists will also analyse biological indicators, such as markers in blood and saliva, to analyse their health over time.

Researchers hope the results will identify early signs of changes in the brain which may be linked to Alzheimer's disease.

The Centre for Dementia Prevention will bring together specialists from the fields of medicine, basic science and the social sciences.

The team aims to advance understanding of the basic biology of failing brain functions and deliver new medicines that could act before symptoms appear.

It also hopes to improve the experience of living with dementia for those affected by the condition.

Professor Craig Ritchie, co-director of the centre, said: "By understanding how the brain ages over time, it may be possible to detect the earliest stages of dementia before symptoms develop.

"We hope this insight will lead to the development of new treatments that could prevent the disease in those at risk."