A new blood test may be key to diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease before the condition becomes debilitating.
Neuroscientists at New York University collected and analyzed blood samples from 125 subjects for acetyl-L-carnitine (ALC) and free carnitine, two essential markers for brain function.
These substances help feed cells, as well as regulate glutamate, which is involved in most brain activities.
When ALC and free carnitine levels decrease, brain function continues. Additionally, reduced levels can lead to excessive amounts of glutamate in the brain, which has been linked to mental health disorders closely related to Alzheimer’s disease.
Levels of these markers were found to gradually decline, especially in women, from people with no signs of memory problems or slow thinking to those with early signs of mild cognitive impairment (MCI).
Scientists involved in the research said the blood test could allow doctors to more easily detect, track and treat the disease.
There is currently no single way to diagnose Alzheimer’s or track the effectiveness of treatments. Patients must undergo rigorous clinical and laboratory testing, but since blood tests are non-invasive, this could be a more accessible way to detect the disease and monitor the effectiveness of new drug therapies.
Dr. Betty Bigio, leader of the study, said the findings “provide the strongest evidence” that levels of these substances could help identify people who have or are at higher risk of developing Alzheimer’s.
However, the researchers emphasize that more research is needed to reveal the sources of CLA and free carnitine and the processes involved in their production, as well as exactly how they relate to cognitive decline.
Blood tests are non-invasive and could be a more accessible way to track the potential effectiveness of new treatments (file image)
About four percent of all adults age 65 and older have ever received a dementia diagnosis in the U.S.; Alzheimer’s disease being the most common form of dementia, diagnosed in nearly 7 million Americans.
And as America’s aging population continues to grow, so will diagnoses. By 2050, the number of Alzheimer’s patients is expected to increase to almost 13 million.
He studyPublished this week in the journal Molecular Psychiatry, it involved 125 people from two separate studies conducted in Brazil and California.
Ninety-three people had been diagnosed with varying degrees of cognitive impairment, and 32 study participants were cognitively healthy.
While the root cause of dementia is still debated, scientists believe the disease is likely the result of an abnormal buildup of proteins (amyloid and tau) in and around brain cells.
In Alzheimer’s patients, amyloid proteins are not effectively cleared from the body and eventually form plaques in the brain.
Besides, tThe Au proteins break off from neurons and form tangles, causing the neurons to die.
When neurons die, messages cannot be transmitted as effectively throughout the brain, which scientists believe is what causes thinking difficulties in dementia.
The graph above shows the estimated projection of Alzheimer’s disease patients in the US through 2060.
Using a combination of ALC and free carnitine measurements along with amyloid and tau protein levels, the researchers were able to diagnose Alzheimer’s patients with an accuracy of 93 percent.
This is an increase from the 80 percent accuracy when using blood markers or proteins alone.
The study’s principal investigator, Dr. Carla Nasca, said that because decreases in ALC and free carnitine correspond closely to the severity of Alzheimer’s disease, the processes involved in their production could offer potential therapies “to reach the root cause of the disease and potentially intervene before permanent brain damage occurs. occurs.’
While the current study found that levels of the two markers could indicate the presence and degree of Alzheimer’s, Dr. Nasca said more research is needed to discover the sources of ALC and free carnitine, as well as how they might be related. with dementia.