A recent study published in Nature has identified blood protein biomarkers that could be used to predict the risk of developing dementia, up to 15 years before diagnosis in clinic. Given that there is currently no cure, early preventative action could prove crucial in our fight against dementia.
At the time of presenting to the clinic, when a person is experiencing symptoms that impact on their daily life, the pathology in the brain is typically very advanced. Any potential treatment options or interventions may be being delivered too late. However, these potential treatments can have much more impact on slowing, stopping, or reversing decline if we can intervene earlier before significant damage is done. Dementia is very difficult to treat, but early detection affords new opportunities for early intervention.
"Changes in the levels of two proteins, GFAP and LTBP2, had high specificity for predicting cases of dementia"
Guo et al. analysed data from 52,645 adults (without a dementia diagnosis) who were followed up for up to 14.1 years, with their blood samples analysed repeatedly over this time. By the end of the study period, 1,417 of these participants had developed dementia. Using data from the UK Biobank, it was found that of 1,463 proteins in the blood plasma, changes in the levels of two proteins, GFAP and LTBP2, had high specificity for predicting cases of dementia. This study is a great example of how advances in proteomics and other scientific techniques can be used to provide new insights into large longitudinal datasets.
A biomarker is an objective indication of disease that can be accurately and reproducibly measured. Blood biomarkers are particularly promising, as they are minimally invasive to obtain and relatively cheap to process. This in turn means that they are also a scalable option, suitable to screen large numbers of the population for early signs of disease – in this case, dementia. The Guo et al. study concludes that people with high levels of a specific protein in their blood are more than twice as likely as people with normal levels to develop dementia, and nearly three times as likely to develop Alzheimer’s.
Nonetheless, whilst the findings are promising, we must be cautious. Further validation of the new potential blood-based biomarkers is needed and a better understanding of how these changes in protein differ between disease must be a focus for future research.
The full article by Guo et al is available at (Guo, Y. et al. Nature Aging https://doi.org/10.1038/s43587-023-00565-0 (2024)).
This article was written by Emily Beswick and edited by Julia Dabrowska, with graphics produced by Lilly Green. Interested in writing for WiNUK yourself? Contact us through the blog page and the editors will be in touch!
Comments