Alzheimer’s disease plasma biomarkers are associated with cognitive performance among Hispanic/Latino adults

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Background Blood-based biomarkers hold promise as a minimally invasive tool for identifying early signs of Alzheimer’s disease pathology and neurodegeneration. We investigated associations between plasma biomarkers of amyloid-beta, tau, neuroaxonal injury, and glial activation with cognitive performance among community-dwelling Hispanic/Latino adults in the United States. Methods We analyzed cross-sectional data from 5730 adults aged 50 years and older (unweighted; mean [SD], 63.5 [8.2] years) in the Study of Latinos-Investigation of Neurocognitive Aging (SOL-INCA; 2016–2018). Plasma concentrations of amyloid-beta (Aβ 42/40 ), phosphorylated tau-181 (pTau-181), neurofilament light chain (NfL), and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) were quantified (Quanterix Simoa HD-X) and log-transformed (ln). Cognitive performance was assessed across domain-specific scores (learning, memory, verbal fluency, and executive functioning/processing speed) used to calculate global cognitive performance. Survey-weighted linear regression models were used to examine associations between plasma biomarkers and cognitive performance, adjusting for sociodemographic, cardiometabolic, kidney, and APOE ε4 covariates. Results Here we show higher ln(pTau-181) and ln(NfL) are associated with lower global cognitive performance (b pTau-181 = −0.06; 95%CI = [−0.12;−0.01]; p = 0.022; b NfL = −0.07; 95%CI = [−0.12;−0.02]; p = 0.005). Lower ln(Aβ 42/40 ) is associated with poorer verbal fluency, higher ln(pTau-181) is associated with poorer learning and memory, and higher ln(NfL) is associated with learning and executive functioning/processing speed. We find ln(GFAP) is not significantly associated with cognitive performance. Conclusions Plasma biomarkers related to Alzheimer’s disease pathophysiology and broader neurodegenerative processes are associated with cognitive performance among Hispanic/Latino adults. These findings highlight the potential utility of blood-based biomarkers for identifying early cognitive vulnerability in this population.

Source: Communications Medicine

DOI: 10.1038/s43856-025-01295-7

Institutions: University of California San Diego, Wayne State University, San Diego State University, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, University of Illinois Chicago, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, University of California, Davis, University of Minnesota

Language: English

Topic: Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research

Subfield: Psychiatry and Mental health

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $3,690

Funders: Office of Dietary Supplements, University of Miami, Northwestern University, San Diego State University, Institut National Du Cancer, National Institutes of Health, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, National Institute on Aging, National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, National Human Genome Research Institute, National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders, National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities

OpenAlex ID: W4417311394