Ein Bluttest auf das Protein p-tau217 kann vorhersagen, wann bei Menschen mit Alzheimer-typischen Veränderungen im Gehirn erste Symptome auftreten. Ein US-Forschungsteam hat einen sogenannten Alzheimer-„Clock“ entwickelt, der das Alter des ersten Anstiegs von p-tau217 mit dem Beginn der Erkrankung in Verbindung bringt.
The model is based on repeated blood tests of 603 older individuals. It predicts the age at which elevated p-tau217 levels first appear, with a mean deviation of three to four years from the actual onset of symptoms. The older the affected individuals are, the shorter the period until the onset: For an increase at age 60, approximately 20 years pass, while for an increase at age 80, only about eleven years pass.
The results were published in the journal on February 19, 2026. Nature Medicine publishedThe researchers, led by Suzanne Schindler of Washington University in St. Louis, see this as an advancement in the selection of participants for clinical trials on prevention. of Alzheimer'sIn the long term, the Test doctors and patients to help with the planning of therapies.
The test is currently not available for cognitively healthy Recommended for individuals and not suitable as a sole diagnostic tool. The study was conducted by the National Funded by the Institute on Aging of the US National Institutes of Health and other partners.
