Effect of reduction in brain amyloid levels on change in cognitive and functional decline in randomized clinical trials: An instrumental variable meta-analysis.

Introduction: Whether the reduction in brain amyloid beta (Aβ) plaque alone may substantially slow cognitive and functional decline in patients with dementia or mild cognitive impairment due to Alzheimer's disease (AD) remains debated.

Methods: An instrumental variable meta-analysis was performed to infer the effect of change in positron emission tomography (PET)-measured Aβ standardized uptake value ratio (SUVR) on cognitive and functional decline.

Results: Pooling data from 16 randomized trials demonstrates that each 0.

Economic and caregiver impact of Alzheimer's disease across the disease spectrum: a cohort study.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) substantially increases health-related costs. This study investigates direct medical costs and characterizes the caregiver burden across AD stages.

Methods: This study analyzed data from the French Primary Health Insurance Fund claims database and reflected this public payer perspective.

Early Stages of Alzheimer's Disease: Evolving the Care Team for Optimal Patient Management.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a progressive, neurodegenerative disease that creates complex challenges and a significant burden for patients and caregivers. Although underlying pathological changes due to AD may be detected in research studies decades prior to symptom onset, many patients in the early stages of AD remain undiagnosed in clinical practice. Increasing evidence points to the importance of an early and accurate AD diagnosis to optimize outcomes for patients and their families, yet many barriers remain along the diagnostic journey.

Assessing what matters most to patients with or at risk for Alzheimer's and care partners: a qualitative study evaluating symptoms, impacts, and outcomes.

Background: The What Matters Most (WMM) study was initiated to evaluate symptoms, AD-related impacts, treatment-related needs, preferences, and priorities among individuals with or at risk for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and their care partners. The objective of this qualitative study phase was to identify a comprehensive set of concepts of interest that are meaningful to individuals across the AD continuum.

Methods: Interviews were conducted with 60 clinically referred individuals and care partners across 5 AD stages (n = 12 each): group 1 (non-clinically impaired individuals with AD pathology), group 2 (individuals with mild cognitive impairment and AD pathology), group 3 (individuals with mild AD), group 4 (individuals with moderate AD and their care partners), and group 5 (care partners of individuals with severe AD).

Species-specific recognition of Aspergillus fumigatus by Toll-like receptor 1 and Toll-like receptor 6.

Background: Aspergillus fumigatus causes invasive aspergillosis, a potentially fatal infection in oncohematological patients. Innate immune detection of A. fumigatus involves Toll-like receptor (TLR) 4 and TLR2, which forms a heterodimer with either TLR1 or TLR6.

Histone deacetylase inhibitors impair antibacterial defenses of macrophages.

Histone deacetylases (HDACs) control gene expression by deacetylating histones and nonhistone proteins. HDAC inhibitors (HDACi) are powerful anticancer drugs that exert anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory activities. We recently reported a proof-of-concept study demonstrating that HDACi increase susceptibility to bacterial infections in vivo.

Immunogenetics of invasive aspergillosis.

Invasive aspergillosis is one of the most important infections in hematopoietic stem cell transplant recipients, with an incidence rate of 5-15% and an associated mortality of 30-60%. It remains unclear why certain patients develop invasive aspergillosis while others, undergoing identical transplant regimen and similar post transplant immunosuppression, do not. Over the last decade, pattern recognition receptors such as Toll-like receptors (TLRs) and the C-type lectin receptors (CLRs) have emerged as critical components of the innate immune system.