Plasma proteins related to inflammatory diet predict future cognitive impairment

Area of Science:

• Immunology
• Neuroscience
• Nutritional Science

Background:

• Immune system dysregulation and inflammatory diets are associated with increased cognitive decline risk.
• Mechanisms linking inflammatory nutrition to age-related cognitive impairment are not fully understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if plasma proteins associated with inflammatory diets can predict future cognitive impairment.
• To explore the relationship between inflammatory dietary patterns and the immune proteome.

Main Methods:

• High-throughput proteomic assays were used on plasma samples from 1528 participants in the Women's Health Initiative Memory Study (WHIMS).
• Proteins linked to inflammatory diets were identified and their association with cognitive decline over 14 years was analyzed.
• External cohorts (ARIC, ESTHER) and biomarker data (Aβ42/40, NfL) were used for validation.

Main Results:

• A specific group of proteins (CXCL10, CCL3, HGF, OPG, CDCP1, NFATC3, ITGA11) were identified as predictors of future cognitive impairment.
• These proteins were associated with dementia risk in external cohorts and correlated with Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology and neurodegeneration biomarkers.
• Associations were also found with MRI-defined neurodegenerative brain atrophy.

Conclusions:

• Dietary patterns with higher inflammatory potential are linked to plasma levels of specific immunologically relevant proteins.
• These identified proteins serve as molecular mediators that predict the subsequent risk for age-related cognitive impairment and Alzheimer's disease.