- New research shows factors like diabetes, alcohol consumption, and traffic-related pollution may accelerate brain aging.
- New research
suggests factors like diabetes, alcohol consumption, and traffic-related
pollution may damage a part of the brain associated with dementia.
- The brain area
of concern is the last to develop during adolescence and is the first to
deteriorate with age.
- The study also
explored genetic factors that may influence the effect of modifiable
factors on dementia risk.
A
comprehensive new study examined the effects of a wide range of modifiable
factors and dementia onset.
The
study authors had previously identified a “weak spot” in
the brain that develops slowly in adolescence, deteriorates early during aging,
and has been linked to dementia.
This
new study’s findings indicate three factors are most likely to lead to the
degradation of this fragile brain region: diabetes, alcohol consumption, and nitrogen dioxide from
traffic-related air pollution.
Unique to this
new research were two mutations of a lesser-studied genome and an enigmatic blood
group called the XG antigen system.
The study is published in Nature Communications.
Studying the brain’s ‘weak spot’
While the focus
of the study is primarily on modifiable factors, the authors felt that the
inclusion of potential genetic influences provided a clear overall picture of
the health of individuals in the study.
The
authors analyzed data — including brain scans — of 39,676 UK Biobank volunteers. They were
considered healthier than the general population. Just a few had received a
diagnosis of dementia, and participants ranged from 44 to 83 years of age.
The
authors measured the effects of 161 modifiable — and a few genetic — factors.
Among these were seven changes in the genome that affect this “weak spot.” Some
are related to Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), an increased risk of
cardiovascular death, and schizophrenia.
Dr. Logan DuBose, a resident physician at
George Washington University, not involved in the study, described this weak
spot in the brain as the network that develops last and the first to degrade
with age.
“The
research team identified brain regions that are the first to decline in
Alzheimer’s disease, known as ‘higher-order brain regions,’ including the
prefrontal cortex, parietal cortex, and temporal cortex, among others,” Dr.
DuBose told Medical News Today.
“These
regions,” he said, “are associated with long-term memory, executive tasks,
working memory, and attention, and they deteriorate as individuals age or in
conditions like Alzheimer’s.”
Their
last in, first out status “is why they are considered ‘vulnerable’ or
‘fragile,’” Dr. DuBose added, “and the research team closely studies the
factors that influence or accelerate the degeneration of these specific fragile
brain regions. The researchers’ main goal was to study the things that make
these brain regions degrade faster, so they can inform us about ways to avoid
certain risk factors and preserve brain health.”
Dr.
Claire Sexton, senior director of scientific programs and outreach
at the Alzheimer’s Association, not involved in the study, commented on the
three factors identified by the researchers for MNT (diabetes,
alcohol intake, and air pollution).
“These
are well-known risk factors for dementia, so their association with a
vulnerable brain network seems very plausible,” Dr. Sexton said.
How does air
pollution damage the brain?
The authors say
that their investigation of the X chromosome revealed their strongest genetic
finding in a peculiar region shared by both sex chromosomes.
“The XG
antigen system is another gene that researchers examined to determine if it
made people more or less susceptible to accelerated degeneration of their
fragile brain regions,” Dr. DuBose said.
“Interestingly,
they discovered that individuals with a specific type of XG gene could be more
affected by air pollution found in the air they breathe. This was found to be a
major factor contributing to damage in fragile brain areas,” Dr. DuBose noted.
He
considered this finding to be significant, he said, “as it could establish a
link between environmental factors such as living in high-traffic areas or
large cities with lots of pollution and increased risk of damage to fragile
brain regions.”
For Dr.
DuBose, such insights suggest a genetic influence on a person’s susceptibility
to known risk factors.
“This insight is crucial, especially as technology advances our
ability to know a person’s genetic predispositions. Knowing a person’s genes
and the associated risks those genes cause allows healthcare providers and
patients to intervene early, potentially slowing disease progression or damage
that otherwise would be more accelerated.”
— Dr. Logan DuBose, physician
Dr.
DuBose pointed out that the study also found associations between genetic
clusters and modifiable risk factors, including alcohol intake and diabetes.
The
authors pointed out another interesting, for now unexplained finding: one of
the novel genetic mutations they observed on the X chromosome was associated
with early life and socioeconomic factors, including:
- their number of
siblings
- whether they
were breast-fed as an infant
- whether their
mother smoked when pregnant
The current
study builds on evidence that has shown how multiple risk factors may contribute
to dementia onset.
Still,
Dr. Sexton called for more research in representative populations that may
replicate and confirm the study’s findings.
She
highlighted, however, the Alzheimer’s Association’s two-year trial to evaluate
“whether lifestyle interventions that simultaneously target multiple risk
factors can protect cognitive function in older adults at increased risk for
cognitive decline.”
The
study is called the U.S.
Pointer Study, or U.S. Study to Protect Brain Health Through
Lifestyle Intervention to Reduce Risk. It is the first such study of a large,
representative group of Americans.
In the
study, more than 2,000 volunteer older adults deemed at increased risk of
cognitive decline are being followed for two years.
“Nearly
30% of current participants are from populations historically underrepresented
in Alzheimer’s/dementia research. Data/results are expected in 2025,” Dr.
Sexton said.
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