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Blood-Brain Barrier permeability in mid-age APOE e4 carriers
Joint Event on 12th International Conference on Vascular Dementia and Dementia & 8th International Conference on Neurological Disorders and Stroke
March 14-16, 2019 | London, UK
Nourah Alruwais, Jennifer Rusted, Naji Tabet and Nicholas Dowell
University of Sussex, UK Brighton & Sussex Medical School, UK
Posters & Accepted Abstracts : J Brain Neurol
Abstract:
Background: Studies suggest that neuropathology of Alzheimer’s
disease (AD) begins years before clinical diagnosis is made. Early
structural brain changes may include increased permeability
of the blood-brain barrier (BBB), microhaemorrhages, and
increased deposition of haemosederin. We ask whether such
changes are present in healthy people at a higher risk for late
onset, non-familial AD, namely carriers of the Apolipoprotein E
epsilon-4 genotype.
Objectives: To assess whether APOE4 status is associated with
subtle brain changes in mid age and whether such changes, if
any, are related to fine deficits in cognition.
Methods: Healthy mid-age adults (45-55) will be genotyped
and pseudo-randomly selected to participate in the second part
of the study, which comprises a blood sample for biomarker
analysis, a memory task and a Gadolinium-based MRI scan.
Measures: Measures will include structural imaging to measure
brain volume differences, quantitative susceptibility mapping
to look at microbleed information and iron deposits, post
gadolinium T1 weighted imaging to measure BBB permeability,
blood markers to measure inflammation and Ferritin levels, and
prospective memory and attention.
Expected Outcomes: Significant differences are anticipated
in the composite profiles between healthy mid-age APOEe4
carriers and non-carriers, matched on age, education and
gender. Biomarker differences are anticipated to correlate
with cognitive performance and indices of the presence of
inflammation. The results from this study will have a significant
potential for impact on early diagnosis of Alzheimer’s
disease before symptoms even show and will facilitate early
interventions to help reverse and/or slow down the trajectory
of decline.
Biography:
Nourah Alruwais is a second year PhD student at the college of Psychology, Sussex University, UK. She completed her MSc in Medical Imaging from Surrey University, UK in 2014. She is a scholar from King Saud University, Saudi Arabia where she has taught Medical Imaging Courses since 2006. She is interested in Neuroimaging research and Dementia.
E-mail: N.Alruwais@sussex.ac.uk
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