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ABSTRACT: Background
Recent studies suggest that plasma phosphorylated tau181 (p-tau181) is a highly specific biomarker for Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related tau pathology. It has great potential for the diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of AD, since it identifies AD with the same accuracy as tau PET and CSF p-tau181 and predicts the development of AD dementia in cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals and in those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Plasma p-tau181 may also be used as a biomarker in studies exploring disease pathogenesis, such as genetic or environmental risk factors for AD-type tau pathology. The aim of the present study was to investigate the relation between polygenic risk scores (PRSs) for AD and plasma p-tau181.Methods
Data from the Alzheimer's Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI) was used to examine the relation between AD PRSs, constructed based on findings in recent genome-wide association studies, and plasma p-tau181, using linear regression models. Analyses were performed in the total sample (n?=?818), after stratification on diagnostic status (CU (n?=?236), MCI (n?=?434), AD dementia (n?=?148)), and after stratification on A? pathology status (A? positives (n?=?322), A? negatives (n?=?409)).Results
Associations between plasma p-tau181 and APOE PRSs (p?=?3e-18-7e-15) and non-APOE PRSs (p?=?3e-4-0.03) were seen in the total sample. The APOE PRSs were associated with plasma p-tau181 in all diagnostic groups (CU, MCI, and AD dementia), while the non-APOE PRSs were associated only in the MCI group. The APOE PRSs showed similar results in amyloid-? (A?)-positive and negative individuals (p?=?5e-5-1e-3), while the non-APOE PRSs were associated with plasma p-tau181 in A? positives only (p?=?0.02).Conclusions
Polygenic risk for AD including APOE was found to associate with plasma p-tau181 independent of diagnostic and A? pathology status, while polygenic risk for AD beyond APOE was associated with plasma p-tau181 only in MCI and A?-positive individuals. These results extend the knowledge about the relation between genetic risk for AD and p-tau181, and further support the usefulness of plasma p-tau181 as a biomarker of AD.
SUBMITTER: Zettergren A
PROVIDER: S-EPMC7792087 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jan
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Alzheimer's research & therapy 20210108 1
<h4>Background</h4>Recent studies suggest that plasma phosphorylated tau181 (p-tau181) is a highly specific biomarker for Alzheimer's disease (AD)-related tau pathology. It has great potential for the diagnostic and prognostic evaluation of AD, since it identifies AD with the same accuracy as tau PET and CSF p-tau181 and predicts the development of AD dementia in cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals and in those with mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Plasma p-tau181 may also be used as a bioma ...[more]