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Background: African Americans (AA) remain underrepresented in Alzheimer's disease (AD) research, despite the prevalence of AD being double in AA compared to non-Hispanic whites. To address this disparity, our group has established the Florida Consortium for African American Alzheimer's Disease Studies (FCADS), focusing on the identification of genetic risk factors and novel plasma biomarkers.
Method: Utilizing FCADS whole exome sequence (WES) and plasma RNA samples from AD cases (n=151) and cognitively unimpaired (CU) elderly controls (n=269), we have performed differential gene expression (DGE) and expression quantitative trait locus (eQTL) analyses on 50 transcripts measured with a custom nanoString® panel. We designed this panel to measure, in plasma, cell-free mRNA (cf-mRNA) levels of AD-relevant genes.
Findings: Association with higher plasma CLU in CU vs. AD remained significant after Bonferroni correction. Study-wide significant eQTL associations were observed with 105 WES variants in cis with 22 genes, including variants in genes previously associated with AD risk in AA such as ABCA7 and AKAP9. Results from this plasma eQTL analysis identified AD-risk variants in ABCA7 and AKAP9 that are significantly associated with lower and higher plasma mRNA levels of these genes, respectively. Receiver operating characteristic analysis of age, sex APOE-ε4 dosage, CLU, APP, CD14, ABCA7, AKAP9 and APOE mRNA levels, and ABCA7 and AKAP9 eQTLs, achieved 77% area under the curve to discriminate AD vs. CU, an 8% improvement over a model that only included age, sex and APOE-ε4 dosage.
Interpretation: Incorporating plasma mRNA levels could contribute to improved predictive value of AD biomarker panels.
Funding: This work was supported by the National Institute on Aging [RF AG051504, U01 AG046139, R01 AG061796 to NET; P30 AG062677 to JAL and NGR]; Florida Health Ed and Ethel Moore Alzheimer's Disease grants [5AZ03 and 7AZ17 to NET; 7AZ07 to MMC; 8AZ08 to JAL].
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2022.103929 | DOI Listing |
Alzheimers Res Ther
September 2025
Department of Neurology, Saarland University, Kirrberger Straße, 66421, Homburg/Saar, Germany.
Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and animal models exhibit an altered gut microbiome that is associated with pathological changes in the brain. Intestinal miRNA enters bacteria and regulates bacterial metabolism and proliferation. This study aimed to investigate whether the manipulation of miRNA could alter the gut microbiome and AD pathologies.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAlzheimers Dement
September 2025
Department of Neurology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA.
Introduction: Mild cognitive impairment (MCI) represents a transitional stage between normal aging and dementia. We investigate associations among cardiovascular and metabolic disorders (hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and hyperlipidemia) and diagnosis (normal; amnestic [aMCI]; and non-amnestic [naMCI]).
Methods: Multinomial logistic regressions of participant data (N = 8737; age = 70.
Nat Aging
September 2025
Department of Clinical Molecular Biology, University of Oslo and Akershus University Hospital, Lørenskog, Norway.
Beyond their classical functions as redox cofactors, recent fundamental and clinical research has expanded our understanding of the diverse roles of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) and nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate (NADP) in signaling pathways, epigenetic regulation and energy homeostasis. Moreover, NAD and NADP influence numerous diseases as well as the processes of aging, and are emerging as targets for clinical intervention. Here, we summarize safety, bioavailability and efficacy data from NAD-related clinical trials, focusing on aging and neurodegenerative diseases.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFGeroscience
September 2025
Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA.
The aging population worldwide faces an increasing burden of age-related conditions, with Alzheimer's disease being a prominent neurodegenerative concern. Drug repurposing, the practice of identifying new therapeutic applications for existing drugs, offers a promising avenue for accelerated intervention. In this study, we utilized the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae to screen a library of 1760 FDA-approved compounds, both with and without rapamycin, to assess potential synergistic effects on yeast growth.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFExp Neurobiol
August 2025
Department of Biological Sciences, Konkuk University, Seoul 05029, Korea.
This study investigated the learning strategy preferences of 11-month-old APP/PS1 double transgenic (Tg) mice, a well-established murine model of Alzheimer's disease (AD). APP/PS1 Tg and non-Tg control mice were serially trained in visual and hidden platform tasks in the Morris water maze. APP/PS1 Tg mice performed poorly in visual platform training compared with non-Tg mice but performed as well as non-Tg mice in hidden platform training.
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