Dementia Biomarkers Associated With Age, Sex, APOE ε4 Status
By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter
MONDAY, April 21, 2025 -- Dementia biomarkers -- phosphorylated tau (P-tau181), neurofilament light (NfL), and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) -- are associated with age, sex, and apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 status, according to a study published online April 16 in Neurology.
Hannah Stocker, M.D., from the German Cancer Research Center in Heidelberg, and colleagues examined the association of age, sex, APOE ε4 status, and menopause with dementia-related blood biomarker levels and the rate of change in community-dwelling adults during 11 years. Within a population-based cohort study, a nested case-control study was conducted. The nested study included 1,026 participants (1:1 for incident dementia during follow-up:without dementia during follow-up) aged 50 to 75 years at baseline who were followed for 17 years.
The researchers observed cross-sectional and longitudinal significant associations for age with all dementia-related biomarkers. Compared with P-tau181 levels, NfL and GFAP levels correlated more strongly with age at baseline. Significantly higher levels and rates of increase in GFAP were seen for women, while levels of NfL were higher among men, after adjusting for age and APOE ε4. There was a significant association seen for APOE ε4 status with baseline and longitudinal levels of P-tau181 and GFAP. After adjusting for age, sex, and APOE ε4, premenopausal status was significantly associated with higher GFAP levels.
"Gaining a better understanding of these biomarkers will help improve our ability to test for dementia in the future with simple blood tests," Stocker said in a statement. "Our research underscores the need to further explore these biomarkers, including during menopause, in the development of dementia."
One author disclosed ties to pharmaceutical companies; one author has study-related patents issued and pending.
Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.
© 2025 HealthDay. All rights reserved.
Posted April 2025
Read this next
Doctors' Preferences for Their Own End-of-Life Care? No Life-Sustaining Practices
FRIDAY, June 13, 2025 -- Many physicians would personally prefer to avoid life-sustaining practices if they had advanced cancer or Alzheimer disease, according to a study...
Mindfulness, Transcranial Stimulation Promising for Urgency Urinary Incontinence
FRIDAY, June 13, 2025 -- Mindfulness (MI) and transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) of the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex offer therapeutic benefit for reducing...
Most TikTok Videos on Inflammatory Bowel Disease Are Low Quality
FRIDAY, June 13, 2025 -- The most-viewed inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) videos on TikTok provide low-quality medical information, according to a study published online in...
More news resources
- FDA Medwatch Drug Alerts
- Daily MedNews
- News for Health Professionals
- New Drug Approvals
- New Drug Applications
- Drug Shortages
- Clinical Trial Results
- Generic Drug Approvals
Subscribe to our newsletter
Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.