Plasma Aβ42 and Total Tau Predict Cognitive Decline in Amnestic Mild Cognitive Impairment

The current preliminary study assessed the predictive power of plasma Aβ42 and t-tau in cognitive decline in patients with amnestic MCI. IMR technology, a high-sensitivity assay platform, was used to reliably detect ultra-low concentrations of Aβ42 and t-tau in blood. Higher levels of plasma biomarkers (i.e., Aβ42, t-tau and Aβ42 × t-tau) were found in participants who showed cognitive decline (the declined group) compared to those who did not (the stable group) and were associated with lower episodic verbal memory performance at baseline and a greater annual decrease in MMSE score. Aβ42 and t-tau had moderate-to-high discriminatory ability (AUC > 0.70), while combining the two biomarkers (i.e., Aβ42 × t-tau) added further differential value. After adjusting for relevant demographic covariates (age, gender, years of education, and ApoE ɛ4 carrier status), Aβ42,…