A recent study has identified a panel of blood-based biomarkers to predict beta-amyloid buildup in the brain. Beta-amyloid burden in the brain is a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. Results of this study were published online on April 30, 2013 in Molecular Psychiatry.
Alzheimer’s disease is not just memory loss – Alzheimer’s kills. In one year alone (2010 data), Alzheimer's was reported as the underlying cause of 820 deaths in Connecticut. There are an estimated 70,000 (2010 data) people living with Alzheimer's disease in Connecticut (5.2 million in the United States).
Clinical symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease are only visible after significant, irreversible brain damage has already occurred. Current methods to test for Alzheimer’s (before brain damage has occurred) use PET (Positron Emission Tomography) or requires a lumbar puncture (also known as a spinal tap). These methods are highly invasive and/or costly. This new potential method to detect the brain beta-amyloid burden in Alzheimer’s would be non-invasive, relatively inexpensive, and would allow for wide population screening and early interventions aimed at slowing down disease progression.
The study measured the levels of biomarkers in the blood of patients with high beta-amyloid burdens and compared them to those with low beta-amyloid burdens. Using this data, a model was created that could predict beta-amyloid burden. This model had a sensitivity of 80% and a specificity of 82%. Several of the biomarkers used are related to immune system signaling, which is consistent with previous findings.
These results support the idea of a blood-based predictor for beta-amyloid accumulation in the brain. They may also help in the development of a low-cost routine test to detect people at risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
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