HEALTH

New blood test could detect

Alzheimer’s disease years
before diagnosis
Study results could help to understand changes brain goes through at earliest
stages of Alzheimer’s

Soraya Ebrahimi
Jan 27, 2023

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Scientists have discovered a new blood test that could detect

Alzheimer’s disease three and a half years before a clinical diagnosis.

The blood-based test that could predict the risk of the condition is
the result of new research from the Institute of Psychiatry,
Psychology and Neuroscience at King’s College London.

The research supports the idea that components in human blood

can influence the formation of new brain cells, a process called
neurogenesis.

The process occurs in a part of the

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brain called the hippocampus, which
Protein in blood ‘may reveal rare
is involved in learning and memory.
form of Alzheimer’s 10 years before
symptoms’ While Alzheimer’s affects the
formation of new brain cells in the
hippocampus during the early stages
of the disease, previous research has been able to study
neurogenesis only in its later stages through post-mortem
examinations.

To understand the early changes, over a number of years researchers

collected blood samples from 56 people with mild cognitive
impairment (MCI), a condition where someone will begin to
experience a weakening of their memory or cognitive ability.

While not everyone with MCI will develop Alzheimer’s disease, those
with the condition progress to a diagnosis at a much higher rate than
the wider population.

Thirty-six of the 56 people in the study were later diagnosed with

Alzheimer’s.

When the researchers used only the blood samples collected

furthest away from when someone had Alzheimer’s disease
diagnosed, they found that the changes in neurogenesis occurred
 diagnosed, they found that the changes in neurogenesis occurred

3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis.

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“Previous studies have shown that blood from young mice can have
a rejuvenating effect on the cognition of older mice by improving
hippocampal neurogenesis," said Prof Sandrine Thuret, the study’s
lead author from the institute.

“This gave us the idea of modelling the process of neurogenesis in a

dish using human brain cells and human blood.

“In our study, we aimed to use this model to understand the process
of neurogenesis and to use changes in this process to predict
Alzheimer’s disease, and found the first evidence in humans that the
:
 body’s circulatory system can have an effect on the brain’s ability to

form new cells.”

The research showed blood samples collected from people who

went on to develop Alzheimer’s disease promoted a decrease in cell
growth and division.

They also promoted an increase in apoptotic cell death, the process

by which cells are programmed to die, the study found.

While the reasons for the increased neurogenesis remain unclear,

the researchers suggest it may be an early compensating
mechanism for the loss of brain cells experienced by those
developing Alzheimer’s disease.

“Our findings are extremely important, potentially allowing us to

predict onset of Alzheimer’s early in a non-invasive fashion," said Dr
Edina Silajdzic, the study’s joint first author.

“This could complement other blood-based biomarkers that reflect

the classical signs of the disease, such as the accumulation of
amyloid and tau [the ‘flagship’ proteins of Alzheimer’s disease].”

The findings were published in the journal Brain.

Updated: January 27, 2023, 4:01 AM

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