Blood test for predicting Alzheimer's risk

Last year I reported on a finding that ten lipids in the blood could predict development of MCI or Alzheimer's within 2-3 years, with over 90% accuracy. The hunt for an accurate blood test has been gathering momentum, on the back of the growing belief that any effective treatment of Alzheimer's might have to start early, and the high cost and inconvenience of other means of early diagnosis.

Since that report we have had several more findings. Bear in mind that 90% accuracy still means one in 10 people would get an incorrect result.

Blood proteins predict whether MCI will convert to Alzheimer's with 87% accuracy

Blood from 452 healthy people, 220 people with mild cognitive impairment, and 476 with Alzheimer’s disease, has allowed researchers to identify those whose MCI would progress to Alzheimer's. The study identified 16 proteins that were associated with brain shrinkage in MCI or Alzheimer's. Further testing revealed 10 proteins that could predict, with 87% accuracy, whether MCI would progress to Alzheimer's within the next 12 months.

http://www.the-scientist.com//?articles.view/articleNo/40452/title/Another-Alzheimer-s-Blood-Test-/

http://www.theguardian.com/society/2014/jul/08/blood-test-predicts-onset-alzheimers-disease

Blood microRNA predicts Alzheimer's disease

A preliminary study using serum from 49 Australians has found that microRNA in the blood can predict early changes in the brain that are associated with Alzheimer's.

One in five healthy participants with no memory complaints showed the specific microRNA associated with Alzheimer's. Brain imaging then confirmed the presence of early degeneration. The 16-miRNA signature, together with established risk factors such as age, sex and apolipoprotein ε4 gene status, predicted Alzheimer's with 91% accuracy.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2014-10/uom-btd102814.php

http://www.futurity.org/blood-test-alzheimers-792862/

Large Danish study links ApoE in blood to Alzheimer's risk

A study using data from nearly 76,000 Danes has shown that the level of the biomarker apolipoprotein E in the blood can predict the risk of developing dementia, with low levels being associated with a higher risk. Apolipoprotein E in the brain is strongly associated with Alzheimer's, with the ApoE4 gene the strongest genetic factor linked to Alzheimer's risk.

The study found that the link between blood plasma level and Alzheimer's and dementia risk existed irrespective of APOE genotype.

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-02/uoc-sbt020915.php

[3892] Hye, A., Riddoch-Contreras J., Baird A. L., Ashton N. J., Bazenet C., Leung R., et al.
(2014).  Plasma proteins predict conversion to dementia from prodromal disease.
Alzheimer's & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association. 10(6), 799 - 807.e2.

[3891] Cheng, L., Doecke J. D., Sharples R. A., Villemagne V. L., Fowler C. J., Rembach A., et al.
(2014).  Prognostic serum miRNA biomarkers associated with Alzheimer’s disease shows concordance with neuropsychological and neuroimaging assessment.
Molecular Psychiatry.

[3899] Rasmussen, K. L., Tybjærg-Hansen A., Nordestgaard B. G., & Frikke-Schmidt R.
(2015).  Plasma levels of apolipoprotein E and risk of dementia in the general population.
Annals of Neurology. 77(2), 301 - 311.

Related News

Brain scans from over 4,000 people, across the age range (9 months to 94 years) and including 1,385 Alzheimer's patients, has revealed an early divergence between those who go on to develop Alzheimer’s and those who age normally.

Mobile game detects Alzheimer's risk

Data from the Harvard Aging Brain Study found that higher amyloid beta levels were associated with increasing anxiety symptoms in cognitively normal older adults. The results suggest that worsening anxious-depressive symptoms may be an early predictor of elevated amyloid beta levels.

A study has shown new technology can quickly and non-invasively detect reduced blood capillaries in the back of the eye that are an early indication of Alzheimer's.

A very long-running study involving 290 people at risk of Alzheimer's has found that, in those 81 people who developed

A long-term study of nearly 3,000 older adults (57-85) has found that those who couldn’t identify at least four out of five common odors were more than twice as likely as those with a normal sense of smell to develop dementia within five years.

A small Japanese study has found evidence that those with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) show a specific decline in their ability to recognize faces, and this is accompanied by changes in the way they scan faces.

Mild cognitive impairment (

In the past few months, several studies have come out showing the value of three different tests of people's sense of smell for improving the accuracy of

A study comparing the language abilities of 22 healthy young individuals, 24 healthy older individuals and 22 people with

Pages

Subscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest newsSubscribe to Latest health newsSubscribe to Latest news
Error | About memory

Error

The website encountered an unexpected error. Please try again later.