Retinal pathological features and proteome signatures of Alzheimer’s disease

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathologies were discovered in the accessible neurosensory retina. However, their exact nature and topographical distribution, particularly in the early stages of functional impairment, and how they relate to disease progression in the brain remain largely unknown. To better understand the pathological features of AD in the retina, we conducted an extensive histopathological …

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Oral nicotinamide riboside raises NAD+ and lowers biomarkers of neurodegenerative pathology in plasma extracellular vesicles enriched for neuronal origin

Declining nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD+) concentration in the brain during aging contributes to metabolic and cellular dysfunction and is implicated in the pathogenesis of aging-associated neurological disorders. Experimental therapies aimed at boosting brain NAD+ levels normalize several neurodegenerative phenotypes in animal models, motivating their clinical translation. Dietary intake of NAD+ precursors, such as nicotinamide riboside …

Continue reading Oral nicotinamide riboside raises NAD+ and lowers biomarkers of neurodegenerative pathology in plasma extracellular vesicles enriched for neuronal origin

Vitamin D supplementation and incident dementia: Effects of sex, APOE, and baseline cognitive status

IntroductionDespite the association of vitamin D deficiency with incident dementia, the role of supplementation is unclear. We prospectively explored associations between vitamin D supplementation and incident dementia in 12,388 dementia-free persons from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center.MethodsBaseline exposure to vitamin D was considered D+; no exposure prior to dementia onset was considered D−. Kaplan–Meier curves …

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Obesity impacts the expression of Alzheimer’s disease–related genes: The Framingham Heart Study

IntroductionWe investigated associations of obesity with the expression of Alzheimer's disease (AD)–related genes in a large community-based cohort.MethodsThe sample consisted of 5619 participants from the Framingham Heart Study. Obesity metrics included body mass index (BMI) and waist-to-hip ratio (WHR). Gene expression was measured for a set of 74 AD-related genes, derived by integrating genome-wide association …

Continue reading Obesity impacts the expression of Alzheimer’s disease–related genes: The Framingham Heart Study

Microglial activation protects against accumulation of tau aggregates in nondemented individuals with underlying Alzheimer’s disease pathology

The role of microglia in tau accumulation is currently unclear but could provide an important insight into the mechanisms underlying Alzheimer’s disease (AD)1. Here, we measured the microglial marker soluble TREM2 and the disease-associated microglial activation stage 2 markers AXL, MERTK, GAS6, LPL, CST7, SPP1 and CSF1 in nondemented individuals from the Swedish BioFINDER-2 cohort …

Continue reading Microglial activation protects against accumulation of tau aggregates in nondemented individuals with underlying Alzheimer’s disease pathology