Public Health.

Background: Substantial evidence suggests association between increased inflammatory markers and Alzheimer's disease. However, evidence for association between the inflammatory skin disease psoriasis and dementia is limited and conflicting. Additionally, few studies investigate how psoriasis severity influences risk.

Public Health.

Background: In elite athletes, participation in sports associated with repetitive head injury exposure has been linked to an increased risk of neurodegeneration later in life. However, there has been limited study in more general populations. We aimed to investigate whether participation in such sports impacted outcomes relevant to brain health in a cohort of British-born older adults.

Public Health.

Background: The prevalence of dementia in low- and middle-income countries is increasing, yet epidemiological data from African populations remains scarce. Crucial risk factors differ in Africa from more intensively studied global areas, including a high burden of cerebrovascular disease (evidenced by high stroke incidence) and HIV, but lower rates of other risk factors such as physical inactivity. In the pre-antiretroviral therapy era, dementia was a common consequence of HIV infection.

Public Health.

Psychosis is a common and distressing disorder in people with Alzheimer disease, associated with a poor clinical prognosis, an increased risk of institutionalization and for which there are no approved treatments. New approaches to diagnosis and symptom assessment and treatment are beginning to move the field forward, including the emergence of psychosis at the pre-clinical or even pre-cognitive impairment stages of disease in some individuals. The Alzheimer's Association International Society to Advance Alzheimer's Research and Treatment (ISTAART) research criteria for psychosis in neurodegenerative disease, and the ISTAART criteria for mild behavioural impairment are examples of recent developments.

Public Health.

Background: Experiencing behavioural symptoms such as aggression, agitation and psychosis contribute significantly to reduced quality of life amongst people with dementia. These behavioral symptoms can be considered more detrimental to overall well-being than cognitive impairment. In the UK, risperidone is the sole approved atypical antipsychotic for treating these symptoms, despite its notable risk of serious side effects, including stroke.

Public Health.

Background: International collaboration is crucial to the future of research in dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Although it is hoped that a single global DLB cohort can be created through combination of data from the many longitudinal studies conducted internationally, a high likelihood of phenotypic heterogeneity may prohibit harmonisation and analysis of datasets. Our primary objective is to determine whether significant heterogeneity is observed in the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics of people with DLB globally.

Biomarkers.

Background: The Lewy body dementias are a class of neurodegenerative disease encompassing Parkinson's disease dementia (PDD) and Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB). Despite similar clinical and neuropathological profiles, the principal differentiating feature is the sequence in which symptoms develop. A question still remains as to a biological basis of this difference and a potential explanation is epigenetic mechanisms, molecular processes which alter the way in which the underlying genetic sequence is expressed.

Biomarkers.

Background: The hippocampus is a key site of atrophy in Alzheimer's disease (AD) and MRI derived estimates of hippocampal volume have been shown to be a robust biomarker of AD-related neurodegeneration. However, its application at the individual level is limited by the lack of reference standards from large normative datasets that can be applied across a wide range of settings. We aimed to investigate the utility of hippocampal volume centile scores adjusted for age, sex and total intracranial volume (TIV) derived from a normative data from 101,457 participants across the life course, as a biomarker of neurodegeneration in AD.

Biomarkers.

Background: The relationship between sleep and AD is unclear: sleep problems may contribute to AD pathogenesis, but the spreading of AD pathology across the brain may also de-regulate sleep. What aspect of sleep is relevant in which disease phase is also unclear, as many studies are based on questionnaires. We study sleep efficiency and rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, objectively measured using an activity tracker to shed light on sleep disturbances across the AD spectrum.

Biomarkers.

Background: Recent developments in physiological and digital biomarkers provide an opportunity to shift the first diagnostic steps to the home-setting, thus allowing earlier detection and treatment of Alzheimer's disease (AD). Blood-based, magnetic resonance imaging, electrophysiological, digital and microbiome biomarkers have shown great promise and call for an evaluation of their accuracy, feasibility and safety in primary care and the community. The aim of PREDICTOM is to develop and test the accuracy of an artificial intelligence (AI) driven screening platform for the prediction and early detection of AD and to extend the clinical pathway to home-based screening using established and novel biomarkers.

Biomarkers.

Background: Subcortical ischemic vascular cognitive impairment (SIVCI) is the most common form of vascular cognitive impairment. Exercise is a potentially effective intervention for SIVCI. However, the mechanisms through which exercise promotes brain health and cognitive function are not well understood.

Biomarkers.

Background: Synapse loss in Alzheimer's disease (AD) is correlates closely with cognitive impairment. Recent evidence suggests that synapse loss is promoted by amyloid-beta, leading in turn to the spread of tau pathology. We sought to assess: 1) the association in positron emission tomography (PET) between several cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) synaptic biomarkers and amyloid and tau burden, as well as their annual change; and 2) the potential clinical utility of these synaptic biomarkers in preclinical AD.

Biomarkers.

Background: Blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity is crucial for brain homeostasis and maintenance. This is a pilot study to investigate cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) levels of several proteins implicated in BBB integrity, such as aquaporin-4 (AQP4), platelet-derived growth factor (PDGFRβ), human major facilitator superfamily domain containing protein 2A (MFSD2A), matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-9, Matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)-2, and Fibrinogen, for assessing BBB integrity.

Method: CSF samples were collected from 100 participants (36 [36%] female and 64 males [64%]; mean [SD] age, 73,34 [9,05] years).

Biomarkers.

Background: The APOE ε4 variant is the largest known genetic risk factor for late-onset sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD). Recent blood biomarker models include APOE ε4 status with plasma p-tau217 for higher accuracy for AD pathology. Thus, protein assays that can accurately determine ε4 carriership simultaneously with plasma p-tau217 would be advantageous for clinical use.

Biomarkers.

Background: PET biomarkers have proven valuable for identifying cognitively unimpaired (CU) individuals at-risk of near-term clinical progression. Given the increasing interest in plasma biomarkers to detect Alzheimer's pathology, we assessed levels of amyloid (Aβ) and tau (p-tau217 and p-tau181) biomarkers in plasma (A+T+) in CU individuals as predictors of clinical progression to mild cognitive impairment (MCI). We then repeated these analyses using cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) and PET biomarkers.

Biomarkers.

Background: CSF t-tau is considered a marker of neuronal injury in AD and strongly correlates with cognitive impairment. Evidence suggests that women accumulate more tau pathology early in AD than men. However, how pregnancy influences this relationship is unclear.

Biomarkers.

Background: Leukocyte telomere length (LTL) serves as a proxy for tissue-specific TL and peripheral immune aging. Its association with aging-related brain endophenotypes, cognitive functioning, and Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk is established, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain elusive. Investigating LTL's association with AD biomarkers is crucial for identifying its role in brain resilience and disease progression.

Biomarkers.

Background: Blood-based biomarkers offer a non-invasive and cost-effective means for Alzheimer's disease (AD) detection. In this study, we performed a direct comparison of these novel biomarkers in a memory clinic population to facilitate their implementation into clinical practice.

Method: We included a total of 208 patients with cognitive complaints from the BIODEGMAR cohort at Hospital del Mar (Barcelona, Spain).

Developing Topics.

Background: Brain connectivity patterns, measured with Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), have been recently studied as a potential biomarker for Alzheimer's disease dementia (AD). A 'disconnected brain' has been associated with greater cognitive impairment in pathological aging (Bennett & Madden, 2014), but it is unclear how this occurs in groups at risk of AD.

Method: Participants (n = 227; aged 55+ years) from the Dementia Prevention Research Clinic, New Zealand, were classified as control (C; n = 35), subjective cognitive decline (SCD; n = 60), single-domain amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI; n = 54), multiple-domain MCI (mMCI; n = 52), and AD (n = 26).

Developing Topics.

Background: The locus coeruleus (LC)-norepinephrine (NE) system is one of the first systems affected in Alzheimer's Disease (AD), prior to cortical involvement. LC-NE system dysregulation has also been associated with neuropsychiatric and stress-related symptoms, early non-cognitive signals of AD. This study investigates whether structural and functional LC-NE system metrics are associated with affective and stress-related reports among predominantly cognitively healthy adults, and whether these associations are exacerbated by AD fluid biomarkers of tau, neurodegeneration and astrocyte reactivity.

Developing Topics.

Background: Neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) are behavioural and psychological manifestations frequently present in dementia and mild cognitive impairment (MCI). NPS are known to be associated with adverse health, cognitive and functional outcomes and increasing needs for hospitalisation and institutionalisation. It is understood that MCI may be an intermediate stage between healthy and dementia states.

Alzheimer's Imaging Consortium.

Background: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is classically viewed as a predominantly amnestic syndrome, with other cognitive and neuropsychiatric symptoms (NPS) being non-integral associations. Emerging Evidence suggests that within typical AD, these symptoms are core features from the onset.

Methods: We employed K-modes clustering on 2483 cognitively impaired (CI) individuals (CDR >= 0.

Dementia Care Research and Psychosocial Factors.

Background: People with dementia have complex palliative care needs including psycho-social, physical and spiritual; however, they are often unmet. It is important to empower people with dementia, family caregivers and professionals to work together to better assess and monitor ongoing needs. This study aimed to co-design and test the feasibility of an integrated model of palliative dementia care to support holistic assessment and decision making for care in the community and care homes (assisted living facilities).

Technology and Dementia Preconference.

Background: Alzheimer's Disease (AD) is associated with sleep disturbances. Moreover, individuals with sleep disturbances have been reported to have a higher risk for developing AD. The measurement of sleep behavior therefore opens the opportunity for a potential digital biomarker of AD.

Elective peri-operative management of adults taking glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide agonists and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors: a multidisciplinary consensus statement: A consensus statement from the Association of Anaesthetists, Association of British Clinical Diabetologists, British Obesity and Metabolic Surgery Society, Centre for Perioperative Care, Joint British Diabetes Societies for Inpatient Care, Royal College of Anaesthetists, Society for Obesity and Bariatric Anaesthesia and UK Clinical Pharmacy Association.

Introduction: Glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, dual glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide receptor agonists and sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 inhibitors are used increasingly in patients receiving peri-operative care. These drugs may be associated with risks of peri-operative pulmonary aspiration or euglycaemic ketoacidosis. We produced a consensus statement for the peri-operative management of adults taking these drugs.