Indianapolis, Ind. — Indiana University in collaboration with Seoul National University sheds light on the importance of ethnic diversity in Alzheimer's disease (AD) research with three recent publications using data in a Korean population from the Korean Brain Aging Study for the Early Diagnosis and Prediction of Alzheimer's Disease (KBASE) study, led by a team including Andrew Saykin, PsyD, professor of radiology and imaging sciences, Kwangsik Nho, PhD, professor of radiology and imaging sciences at IU School of Medicine, and Dong Young Lee, MD, PhD, professor of psychiatry at Seoul National University College of Medicine in Seoul, South Korea.
These publications in the Alzheimer’s & Dementia Journal, highlight the impact of vascular health on cognitive decline, gene expression changes on brain amyloid-β deposition, and novel generic factors on brain tau deposition in a Korean population, emphasizing the importance of ethnic diversity in Alzheimer’s disease research.
The first publication: In the study, ‘Association of amyloid and cardiovascular risk with cognition: Findings from KBASE,’ Soumilee Chaudhuri and Desarae Dempsey, co-first authors of the study and graduate students in the Medical Neuroscience Graduate Program, examined a link between cardiovascular risk and amyloid pathology in relation to cognitive decline in older Korean participants. The study revealed a complex interplay between vascular health and amyloid deposition in preserving cognition. Cardiovascular risk was linked to lower baseline cognition in individuals without amyloid pathology. These findings emphasize the importance of managing vascular risk factors to protect cognitive function in an Asian population. Tailoring prevention strategies to specific demographic and clinical subgroups can inform personalized prevention strategies.
The second publication: In a groundbreaking study, ‘Genome-wide transcriptome analysis of Aβ deposition on PET in a Korean cohort,’ Tamina Park, PhD, first author of the study and a postdoctoral researcher in the Neuroimaging Genomics Lab, has leveraged data from the KBASE to identify specific gene expression changes in blood linked to amyloid-β deposition in the brain, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. By analyzing transcriptomics and amyloid positron emission tomography (PET) data, researchers have uncovered a significant role in brain amyloid-β deposition for genes involved in immune pathways, especially those related to natural killer (NK) cells. These findings hold the potential to revolutionize Alzheimer’s diagnosis and treatment, enabling earlier detection through blood tests and paving the way for targeted therapies.
The third publication: In this study, ‘Tau pathway-based gene analysis on PET identifies CLU and FYN in a Korean cohort,’ Dahyun Yi, PhD, first author of the study and professor in Seoul National University, investigated the genetic underpinnings of Alzheimer's disease by analyzing how specific genetic variants influence tau protein deposition, a hallmark of AD. Using advanced imaging techniques and genomics data in a Korean population, researchers identified two novel genetic variants in the CLU and FYN genes that significantly impact tau deposition in the brain. The findings highlight that CLU and FYN may play a specific role in tau pathophysiology, particularly among the individuals with the pathological apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele. This in vivo work emphasizes contribution to our understanding of tau deposition and risk genetic variants in individuals of Korean ancestry and the potential of these genes as targets for developing biomarkers and therapies and opens pathways for precision medicine approaches.
Together, these studies offer valuable insights into the complexity of Alzheimer's disease, emphasizing the importance of ethnic diversity in shaping future research and personalized approaches in Alzheimer’s disease prevention and treatment.