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Dr Christophe de Jaeger (Longevity and geriatrics)
American researchers from the University of Pittsburgh in the United States, worked on blood samples to identify people at risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease. Explanations from Dr. Christophe de Jaeger, physiologist and member of the Doctissimo expert committee.
New breakthrough against Alzheimer’s. In a study published a few days ago in the journal NatureAmerican experts explain that a blood test would be possible to identify people likely to trigger the disease.
Blood samples from 1000 participants
For this work, the American scientists analyzed a thousand blood samples from elderly people, not presenting cognitive disorders but having, for some, amyloid plaques.
Results: Only elderly people with both amyloid and blood markers of abnormal activity from their astrocytes would progress to symptomatic Alzheimer’s disease in the future.
As a reminder, astrocytes are special star-shaped cells present in our brain. They fulfill different functions for neurons, an immune function in particular by protecting them from potential aggressors but also a role of supplier of nutrients.
Biomarkers of the disease found in the blood
For the American experts, these results show that patients who develop Alzheimer’s disease also have biomarkers in their blood which indicate that these astrocytes are activated. This, they say, explains why some patients with amyloid clusters in the brain never develop Alzheimer’s disease.
Dr. Tharick Pascoal, associate professor of psychiatry and neurology at the university and lead author of the study, explained: “CThis puts astrocytes at the center as key regulators of disease progression, challenging the idea that amyloid is enough to trigger Alzheimer’s disease.“.
For him, this study “argues that testing for the presence of brain amyloid along with blood biomarkers of astrocyte reactivity is the optimal screening to identify patients most at risk of progressing to Alzheimer’s disease“.
The point of view of Dr Christophe de Jaeger, physiologist and member of the Doctissimo expert committee
“Astrocytes are versatile brain cells, which perform different functions in our brain. What this study shows us is that, probably, these cells have an importance that has been underestimated until now, in Alzheimer’s disease. This disease has a complex pathophysiology and the astrocyte could be a key element. This could also explain why some people do not trigger the disease despite the presence of visible brain damage. To conclude, this is an interesting lead which further demonstrates that Alzheimer’s disease is multifactorial and that it is very complex to know what is decisive or not in its onset.“.