A new blood test could detect Alzheimer’s disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis, according to a study.

A new blood test could detect Alzheimer's disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis, according to a study.
A new blood test could detect Alzheimer’s disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis, according to a study. Image Source: freepik.com

A new blood test could detect Alzheimer’s disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis, according to a study.

Researchers just discovered a blood test that can predict whether you are at risk of Alzheimer’s disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis.

People are more likely to develop dementia as a result of an unhealthy lifestyle and other disorders. Dementia patients’ memories deteriorate as they age. It is a disease that occurs beyond the age of 60. Furthermore, this disease has not been entirely eradicated. Researchers just discovered a blood test that can predict whether you are at risk of Alzheimer’s disease 3.5 years before a clinical diagnosis.

The process of neurogenesis is mentioned in the study, which was published in the journal Brain. This is a process in which blood components alter to produce new brain cells. The hippocampus, a vital region of the brain involved in learning and memory, undergoes neurogenesis.

Blood samples were taken from 56 patients with mild cognitive impairment. MIC is a condition that causes people to gradually lose their memory. Blood samples were collected from the 56 participants in order to better understand the memory or cognitive changes that occurred over time. Not everyone in the study had Alzheimer’s disease. 36 of them, though, are at risk of Alzheimer’s disease.

The research, carried out at King’s College London’s Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology, and Neuroscience, investigated how blood cells changed in response to an elevated risk of Alzheimer’s disease. This study focused on how blood impacts brain cells.

Blood samples taken over several years from people at high risk of Alzheimer’s disease and its progression encourage decreased cell growth and division and increased apoptotic cell death. These samples also accelerated the transition of immature brain cells into hippocampal neurons, according to the researchers. However, it is still unknown what causes enhanced neurogenesis.

Professor Sandrine Thuret of King’s IOPPN, the study’s lead author, stated: “Previous studies have shown that rat blood stimulates hippocampus regeneration, which helps rejuvenate cognition as the rat ages. This inspired us to create a model of neurogenesis using brain cells and human blood. We wanted to understand the process of neurogenesis and use alterations in this process to anticipate Alzheimer’s disease, so we looked into it. “We discovered the first evidence in humans that the circulatory system can affect the brain’s ability to make new cells.”

Read also: To treat vitamin B12 insufficiency, include these six items in your daily diet.