Early peripheral immune signaling precedes tau elevation and blood-brain barrier disruption in Alzheimer's disease

Neuroinflammation, along with amyloid beta (Aβ) deposition, phospho-tau (ptau) accumulation, blood-brain barrier (BBB) disruption, and cognitive decline are recognized components of Alzheimer's disease (AD). However, the timing and nature of peripheral immune changes across AD biological and clinical stages remain poorly understood. Here we performed mass cytometry profiling of whole blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) immune cells from 351 human samples across two independent clinical cohorts spanning the AD continuum. We identify coordinated peripheral immune signaling signatures that emerge during preclinical stage of AD and precede significant elevation of plasma ptau217, CSF ptau181 and BBB disruption measured by dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI). AD-enriched immune features, including increased phospho-Akt signaling in naïve T killer cells and phospho-PLCγ2 signaling in granulocytes, were not observed in patients with Frontotemporal lobar degeneration or treatment-naïve multiple sclerosis. Furthermore, these immune signaling states could be induced in healthy donor immune cells following exposure to plasma or CSF from individuals with AD, indicating that circulating factors can drive these peripheral immune alterations. Together, our findings demonstrate that dynamic peripheral immune state changes arise early in AD and precede canonical biomarker and vascular changes, highlighting immune signaling pathways as potential targets for early therapeutic intervention.