Very important blood test for Alzheimer’s is created.
Matt Kaeberlein describes in the RadioLab podcast “The Dirty Drug in the Ice Cream Tub” - Alzheimer’s is caused by tangled proteins and plaques… rapamycin prevents this from happening.
Tau is a protein that clumps together and forms “tangles” in the brains of people who have Alzheimer’s, per Healthline. These tangles interfere with cognitive function.
Tau is a protein that clumps together and forms “tangles” in the brains of people who have Alzheimer’s, per Healthline. These tangles interfere with cognitive function.
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#2
Paper: Plasma MTBR-tau243 biomarker identifies tau tangle pathology in Alzheimer’s disease 2025
Insoluble tau aggregates within neurofibrillary tangles are a defining neuropathological feature of Alzheimer’s disease (AD) and closely correlate with clinical symptoms. Although tau pathology can be assessed using tau positron emission tomography, a more accessible biomarker is needed for diagnosis, prognosis and tracking treatment effects. Here we present a new plasma tau species, the endogenously cleaved, microtubule-binding region containing residue 243 (eMTBR-tau243), which specifically reflects tau tangle pathology. Across the AD spectrum in three different cohorts (n = 108, 55 and 739), plasma eMTBR-tau243 levels were significantly elevated at the mild cognitive impairment stage and increased further in dementia. Plasma eMTBR-tau243 showed strong associations with tau positron emission tomography binding (β = 0.72, R2 = 0.56) and cognitive performance (β = 0.60, R2 = 0.40), outperforming other plasma tau (%p-tau217 and %p-tau205) biomarkers. These results suggest that plasma eMTBR-tau243 may be useful for estimating the tauopathy load in AD, thereby improving the diagnostic evaluation of AD in clinical practice and monitoring the efficacy of tau-targeted therapies in clinical trials.
Press release: Highly accurate blood test diagnoses Alzheimer’s disease, measures extent of dementia
The R2 are not that impressive. Not sure if this will be really useful.
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