summary: Researchers have identified how cerebrovascular disease (CeVD) disrupts brain connections and causes cognitive decline and neurodegeneration, along with Alzheimer’s disease (AD). By studying brain networks and blood biomarkers in older adults, they found distinct but additive effects of CeVD and AD-related markers on cognition and brain atrophy. Although CeVD acts as a global disruptor of brain communication networks, AD markers such as plasma p-tau181 follow a different pathway.
These findings highlight the potential of combining neuroimaging and blood biomarkers for early detection and monitoring of dementia. This study provides new insights into the independent roles of CeVD and AD in promoting cognitive and structural brain changes. Future research will aim to refine brain connectivity markers for early prediction and targeted intervention.
Important facts:
- Dual path: CeVD and AD markers influence cognition and brain atrophy independently and additively, but not synergistically.
- Impact on brain connectivity: CeVD disrupts global brain network communication and influences cognitive decline.
- Predictive biomarkers: Neuroimaging and blood-based markers hold promise for early dementia risk assessment.
sauce: NUS
Researchers are providing new insights into how brain dysfunction associated with cerebrovascular disease (CeVD) interacts with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology and impacts neurodegeneration and cognition in older adults. revealed.
A research team led by Associate Professor Juan Helen Zhou, director of the Center for Translational Magnetic Resonance Research at the Yong Lu Lin School of Medicine at the National University of Singapore (NUS Medicine), has identified functional brain connectome phenotypes associated with multiple CeVD markers. Along with Alzheimer’s disease, it additionally contributes to cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.
This study highlights that CeVD is a global disruptor of brain connectivity and reshapes our understanding of the role of CeVD in dementia.
CeVD often co-occurs with AD and has long been an important research area in aging and dementia research. This affects blood vessels and blood flow in the brain, such as stroke, cerebral atherosclerosis (narrowing or hardening of large cerebral arteries due to plaque buildup), and small vessel disease that affects small blood vessels in the brain. Refers to a series of diseases. brain.
These conditions can interfere with the supply of oxygen and nutrients essential for normal brain function and cause brain damage.
In the study, published in Alzheimer’s & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, the research team examined 529 older participants on the dementia spectrum, ranging from those with cognitive health to those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. We investigated the functional organization of the brain in humans.
Analyzing how different markers and brain activity patterns of CeVD correlated with its impact on participants, the research team found that the overall identified unique functional connectome phenotypes, or unique patterns in the brain’s communication networks. CeVD can be seen on brain scans.
A key finding of this study was the identification of a wide range of effects, including: p-tau181blood-based biomarkers of AD, and CeVD-associated functional connectome phenotypes on cognitive decline and brain atrophy.
While these two factors contribute additively to long-term cognitive decline and brain atrophy, this study found no evidence of a synergistic relationship between CeVD and brain atrophy. p-tau181suggesting that these factors may influence neurodegeneration in different pathways.
A/Professor Zhou said: “We discovered that CeVD-associated brain network phenotypes, together with key blood biomarkers of Alzheimer’s disease, can provide powerful insights into the future trajectory of cognitive decline and neurodegeneration.
“Our findings highlight the potential of brain connectome-based markers to track cognitive decline, particularly in individuals at risk for dementia, and to better understand the pathophysiology of these co-occurring diseases. It highlights the importance of integrating neuroimaging and blood biomarkers.”
Dr. Joanna Hsu Hsiang Chong, senior researcher in Professor A/Chou’s group and lead author of the study, added:
“Importantly, this combination of patterns is associated with CeVD and plasma.” p-tau181markers of Alzheimer’s disease had independent and additive effects on long-term outcomes.
“While these together contributed to cognitive decline and increased brain atrophy at baseline and over time, they did not directly interact to amplify each other’s effects.”
Professor A/Zhou and Dr Chong are also from NUS Medicine’s Center for Sleep and Cognition and the Translational Research Program in Healthy Longevity and Human Potential.
The research team now aims to investigate how brain communication patterns associated with CeVD are influenced by severity, cause, and location of CeVD markers throughout the disease progression.
They also plan to investigate how this pattern interacts with various Alzheimer’s disease markers and contributes to brain degeneration and decline in multiple cognitive domains. Furthermore, we also aim to determine whether these brain network characteristics can be used as reliable biomarkers to monitor current and future cognitive decline, particularly in individuals at risk for dementia.
These features may provide more accurate predictions than traditional brain imaging methods and help identify long-term cognitive outcomes earlier.
Their goal is to better understand the brain mechanisms behind CeVD and AD and develop advanced imaging tools for early detection and disease monitoring.
Funding: This research was supported by the National Research Foundation of Singapore under the NMRC Open Fund – Large Collaborative Grant (MOH-000500) and managed by the Singapore Ministry of Health through the NMRC Office at MOH Holdings Pte Ltd.
Participants in this study were recruited from National University Hospital and St. Luke’s Hospital.
About this neuroscience research news
author: gladys sim
sauce: NUS
contact: Gladys Sim – NUS
image: Image credited to Neuroscience News
Original research: Open access.
“Additive effects of functional connectome phenotype and plasma p-tau181 in cerebrovascular disease on longitudinal neurodegenerative and cognitive outcomes” Written by Juan Herren et al. Alzheimer’s disease and dementia
abstract
Additive effects of functional connectome phenotype and plasma p-tau181 in cerebrovascular disease on longitudinal neurodegenerative and cognitive outcomes
introduction
We explore the effects of multifocal cerebrovascular disease (CeVD) neuroimaging markers on brain functional connectivity (FC) and how such CeVD-related FC changes may be associated with plasma phosphorylated tau (p-tau)181 (AD). We investigated how they interact with each other. [AD] markers) influence downstream neurodegeneration and cognitive changes.
method
Multivariate associations between four CeVD markers and whole-brain FC in 529 participants across the dementia spectrum were examined using partial least squares correlations. A linear mixed effects model was used to investigate the interaction effects of CeVD-related FC pattern and p-tau181 on longitudinal gray matter volume (GMV) and cognitive changes.
result
We identified a brain FC phenotype associated with high CeVD burden across all markers. Furthermore, this common CeVD-associated FC phenotype and p-tau181 expression contributed additively, rather than synergistically, to baseline and long-term GMV and cognitive changes.
discussion
Our findings suggest that CeVD has global effects on the brain connectome and highlight the additive nature of AD and CeVD on neurodegeneration and cognition.
