Protein markers in blood can help predict dementia 15 years in advance: Study
A new study has shown how some protein biomarkers in blood can be used to detect dementia 15 years before it is diagnosed.
This dementia study analysed over 50,000 blood samples.This study analysed over 50,000 blood samples. (Pexels)
Scientists have shown in a new study how protein biomarkers found in blood can help predict dementia 15 years before it is diagnosed.
It is estimated that more than 8.8 million Indians above the age of 60 live with Dementia. During its final stages, the neurodegenerative disease can dive into the deepest parts of the brain and cause death by inhibiting basic bodily functions like heart rate control and breathing.
The study published in the journal Nature Aging on Monday shows how profiles of protein in the blood can be used to accurately predict dementia 15 years before it is clinically diagnosed. These biomarkers can be found in blood, some other body fluids or tissues. The study is the largest of its kind and included blood samples from 52,645 healthy participants taken from UK Biobank.
The blood samples studied were collected between 2006 and 2010 and analysed between 10 to 15 years later by the research team. Until March 2023, 1,417 of the participants went on to develop dementia and not coincidentally, these people’s blood showed irregularities with some protein biomarkers.
The researchers used machine learning to analyse 1,463 proteins and identified 11 and combined a “protein panel” that the researchers believe can be very accurate at predicting dementia in the future. After incorporating risk factors like age, sex, education level and genetics, the predictive model showed 90 per cent accuracy, indicating that it could potentially be used to screen for dementia.
Researchers have in the past identified proteins like GFAP (Gilial Fibrillary acidic protein) as potential biomarkers for dementia in smaller studies but this new research is mucl larger and was conducted over many years.