An international study identified 15 novel biomarkers that are linked to late-onset dementias. These protein biomarkers predict cognitive decline and subsequent increased risk of dementia 20 years before the disease onset.
The proteins identified by the study are involved with immune system dysfunction, blood-brain-barrier dysfunction, vascular pathologies, and central insulin resistance. Six of these proteins can be modified with currently available medications.
“These findings provide novel avenues for further studies to examine whether drugs targeting these proteins could prevent or delay the development of dementia,” explained lead author Joni Lindbohm MD, PhD from the University College London and University of Helsinki.
The study findings have been published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association.
Pathophysiological research on dementia aetiology has focused on amyloid beta and tau proteins, but thus far prevention and treatment trials targeting these biomarkers have been unsuccessful. This has spurred the search for other potential mechanisms that could predispose to dementia. Recent development of scalable platforms has made it possible to analyse a wide range of circulating proteins, which may reveal novel dementia-linked biological processes.
In this study, the researchers analysed proteins with a novel large-scale protein panel from stored blood samples of the British Whitehall II and US Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) study collected 20 years ago. Using a panel of 5000 proteins, the researchers identified proteins in plasma that predicted cognitive decline in 5-yearly screenings and subsequent onset of clinical dementia. The 15 proteins that were identified were predictive of dementia in both the British and US cohorts.
“This new study is the first step in our 5-year Wellcome Trust funded research programme. We will next examine whether the identified proteins have a causal association with dementia, and whether they are likely to be modifiable, and druggable”, said study author Professor Mika Kivimäki, Director of the Whitehall II study at University College London.
The research programme ultimately aims to identify novel drug targets for dementia prevention.
Source: EurekAlert!
