Could managing diabetes and other metabolic conditions help alter the course of Alzheimer’s disease before memory loss even begins?
Researchers in Dubai are set to launch a 500-person study to investigate whether improving metabolic health can influence levels of pTau217, a blood biomarker associated with Alzheimer’s disease, among residents aged 55 and older who are at elevated metabolic risk.
The initiative, led by Metabolic (formerly GluCare.Health) in collaboration with Roche, will recruit UAE residents with at least one metabolic condition, including diabetes, obesity, hypertension or dyslipidaemia. Participants with an existing diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease, major neurodegenerative disorders, stroke or traumatic brain injury will be excluded.
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What did the study aim to find?
The study has two main objectives — to estimate how common elevated pTau217 levels are among metabolically at-risk residents in the UAE, and to assess whether intensive lifestyle and metabolic interventions are associated with changes in the biomarker over time.
“We want to measure the effectiveness of putting the patient in the right metabolic pathway and lifestyle intervention, and to assess whether the pTau217 will improve,” said Hala Zakaria, Innovation, Research and Operations Manager at Metabolic.
“That’s why we’re going to retest them at six months and 12 months, so we know the longitudinal effect of the metabolic intervention.”
Scientists increasingly believe that Alzheimer’s disease begins years, if not decades, before symptoms such as memory loss become apparent. One of the most promising biomarkers under investigation is pTau217, which measures a form of tau protein associated with Alzheimer’s-related changes in the brain.
Zakaria described pTau217 as “another blood test” that can be added to routine bloodwork already performed in the clinic.
“It’s another blood biomarker,” she said. “We’re actually not going to draw blood specifically for this because when they come to the clinic, we already take their blood for other testing.”
Participants found to have elevated pTau217 levels will undergo confirmatory cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) testing and be referred to neurologists for further evaluation. Within Metabolic’s programme, they will also receive intensive support aimed at optimising their metabolic health.
“We’re going to target their intervention more closely, especially under our coaching sessions, our psychosocial sessions and our behaviour model, making sure that metabolically they are fine and controlled,” Zakaria said.
“If they’re diabetic, we want their diabetes to be controlled. If they’re obese, we might help them lose weight more efficiently. If they have hypertension, we can refer them to our cardiologist.”
While the term “Type 3 diabetes” is sometimes used in research and public discussions to describe links between insulin resistance and Alzheimer’s disease, it is not an official medical diagnosis. However, growing evidence suggests that people with diabetes face a significantly higher risk of developing dementia later in life.
The Dubai study is expected to provide some of the first local data exploring this relationship.
“We will be the first study in the UAE to measure the prevalence of pTau217 in Dubai specifically,” Zakaria said.
“Unfortunately, we have no local data whatsoever. Hopefully, this study will identify this number in the UAE and give us a good estimate.”
The study has now secured the necessary ethical and regulatory approvals, with recruitment expected to begin as early as July. Eligible participants will need to enrol through Metabolic’s care pathway, allowing researchers to track their broader clinical profile alongside the biomarker findings.
Researchers hope preliminary findings could emerge after the first six months of follow-up, with the results ultimately being published in scientific journals.
For Zakaria, the potential value lies not only in identifying individuals who may be at increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease before symptoms develop, but also in understanding whether earlier intervention could make a meaningful difference.
“Our hypothesis from this study is to show success when we identify those patients at risk early, years before symptoms appear, using just a simple blood test and putting them on the right pathway,” she said.
“I think that’s the most successful outcome.”
Source: Khaleej Times