CONFERENCE COVERAGE SERIES
Alzheimer's Association International Conference (AAIC) - 2023
Amsterdam, Netherlands and Online
16 – 20 July 2023
Donanemab Data Anchors Upbeat AAIC
Alzheimer’s researchers got their first look at data from the positive Phase 3 trial. Many expect this antibody to become the third approved immunotherapy for AD.
Give BACE Inhibitors a Second Chance?
Between basic researchers and clinicians, momentum is growing to test BACE inhibition again. This time, at low doses.
CSF MTBR-tau-243 Tracks Tangles, Plummets in Response to Antibody
In contrast to phospho-tau species that mirror amyloid, CSF MTBR-tau-243 reflects tau-PET. It fell upon treatment with an antibody against tau’s midsection.
Cohort LEADS Toward Better Understanding of Sporadic Early Onset AD
First data from the Longitudinal Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease Study hints at what might cause this type of AD and how it unfolds.
Spying on α-Synuclein Inclusions: PET Tracers Inch Closer to Success
A crop of new PET tracers that bind α-synuclein aggregates shows promise in tissue samples and in animal models. Will they prove potent enough for brain imaging?
Is ARIA an Inflammatory Reaction to Vascular Amyloid?
Scientists at AAIC said ARIA-E resembles inflammation related to cerebral amyloid angiopathy. The prime suspect? The complement cascade.
Wanted: Fluid Biomarkers for CAA, ARIA
The ability to quickly detect cerebral amyloid angiopathy and ARIA would make amyloid immunotherapy safer, but research in this area is just beginning.
Does One Copy of the Christchurch ApoE Variant Slow Alzheimer’s?
Twelve people heterozygous for this protective variant were still sharp seven years after their expected age of AD onset. One had fewer tangles than expected.
Finally, a Diagnostic Marker for Lewy Body Disease?
α-Synuclein seed amplification assays identify people with LBD. They may outperform clinical diagnosis, and hint that dementia with Lewy bodies might be overdiagnosed.
Revised Again: Alzheimer's Diagnostic Criteria Get Another Makeover
The newly proposed scheme uses only amyloid and tau for diagnosis and staging. It establishes parallel tracks for fluid or imaging markers, and recognizes a clinical stage zero.
What Factors Make Amyloid Immunotherapy Successful?
At AAIC 2023, scientists tied clinical success to drug exposure, speed of plaque clearance, amyloid negativity.
Biomarkers and Efficacy: Not (Yet?) a Perfect Union
Scientists at AAIC debated discrepant results, updated a model of the biomarker-efficacy relationship, and debuted the CenTauR scale for tau PET.
Meet the Switching Mice: They Flip Their Glia APOE4 to APOE2
Swapping allele expression in astrocytes lowered amyloid load, lessened gliosis, and improved memory. This works even after amyloidosis is in full swing.
At the Heart of Alzheimer’s in Down’s: Cerebrovascular Disease
Few people with Down's syndrome have cardiovascular risk factors, yet most develop cerebrovascular disease. Will this complicate anti-amyloid immunotherapy?