It has been previously shown that chronic kidney disease is associated with plasma p-tau changes. Bruna Bellaver, PhD, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, investigated whether kidney function more generally has an impact on plasma p-tau biomarker performance. The study was conducted in participants from a research cohort and a population-based cohort, measuring kidney function using creatine and cystatin C, respectively. A direct correlation was shown between plasma p-tau181 levels and kidney function in both cohorts, with those with decreased kidney function showing increased plasma p-tau181. Interestingly, the magnitude of increase in plasma p-tau with decreased kidney function was 12% in the research cohort, but 30% in the population cohort. Furthermore, the study found that the association between plasma p-tau181 and amyloid-beta (Aβ)-PET was stronger in those with normal kidney function. Therefore, these findings demonstrate the need to account for impaired kidney function when using plasma p-tau as a proxy of Aβ-PET in Alzheimer’s disease (AD), as those with elevated p-tau181 levels attributable to decreased kidney function could be wrongly put on the AD continuum. This interview took place at the AD/PD™ 2023 congress in Gothenburg, Sweden.
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