A University of Turku study has revealed that biomarkers linked to Alzheimer’s disease can be detected in blood as early as middle age, potentially paving the way for earlier diagnosis and preventive treatment.
The research, part of the Cardiovascular Risk in Young Finns Study, analyzed blood samples from 2,051 participants aged 41–56 and their parents aged 59–90. Results showed that higher biomarker levels correlate with increasing age and may also be influenced by maternal inheritance and kidney disease.
“These findings suggest that Alzheimer’s disease processes begin decades before symptoms appear,” said Suvi Rovio, Senior Researcher at the university’s Research Centre of Applied and Preventive Cardiovascular Medicine. She noted that while blood-based biomarker testing is promising, standardized reference values are still needed before it can be widely used in clinical diagnosis.
The study also confirmed that the APOE ε4 gene, a known risk factor for Alzheimer’s, is linked to elevated biomarker levels later in life, but not yet in middle age.
Published in Lancet Healthy Longevity, the study highlights how blood testing could offer a cost-effective tool to identify high-risk individuals and prioritize preventive therapies, addressing Alzheimer’s before cognitive decline begins.
Source: University of Turku
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