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How do brain changes in older adults with type 1 diabetes impact their risk for developing Alzheimer’s?
Luciana Mascarenhas Fonseca, Ph.D.
Washington State University
Pullman, WA - United States
Background
Insulin is a hormone that helps the body maintain appropriate levels of sugar. Insulin can also be transported to the brain, where it helps maintain nerve cell energy levels and connections between nerve cells. Since insulin plays an important role in the brain, researchers believe insulin might also play a role in Alzheimer’s progression. Past studies have shown that problems with how insulin sends signals in the brain also known as “insulin resistance” could lead to change in nerve cell networks and cause cognitive symptoms of Alzheimer’s. As a result, studies have identified type 2 diabetes as a risk factor for developing Alzheimer’s.
Due to improvements in treatment with diabetes, several individuals with type 1 diabetes (a type of diabetes that often develops in childhood) are living into old age. This increased lifespan, however, may also be associated with increase in the number of individuals with type 1 diabetes living with Alzheimer’s. Studies have shown that individuals with Type 1 diabetes may be associated with cognitive impairments, even at younger ages. However, very little is known about the cognition of individuals with Type 1 diabetes, as they grow older.
Research Plan
Dr. Luciana Mascarenhas Fonseca and colleagues will study whether and how older people with type 1 diabetes may have a risk of developing Alzheimer’s. The researchers will collect and analyze datasets from 200 middle-aged and older type 1 diabetic adults from another ongoing study of type 1 diabetes and cognition. The datasets will include cognitive test results, blood samples and other tests administered to the participants to measure levels of brain blood vessel disease (cerebrovascular disease).
In particular, the researchers will use blood samples to test the levels of beta-amyloid and tau; beta-amyloid and tau accumulate to form plaques and tangles, the two main hallmark brain changes of Alzheimer’s. The team will then study how abnormal levels of protein in the blood and brain blood vessel may be potentially linked to changes in cognition in the participants with type 1 diabetes.
Impact
The study results could shed new light on the interplay between vascular risk factors, biomarkers for Alzheimer’s and changes in cognition in aging individuals with Type 1 diabetes. If successful, the results may give rise to potential therapeutic targets to tackle Alzheimer’s in individuals with Type 1 diabetes.
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