Impact of hs-CRP concentration on brain structure alterations and cognitive trajectory in Alzheimer's disease

Ye Zhang; Yasuko Tatewaki; Taizen Nakase; Yingxu Liu; Naoki Tomita; Benjamin Thyreau; Haixia Zheng; Michiho Muranaka; Yumi Takano; Tatsuo Nagasaka; Yasuyuki Taki

doi:10.3389/fnagi.2023.1227325

Impact of hs-CRP concentration on brain structure alterations and cognitive trajectory in Alzheimer's disease

Front Aging Neurosci. 2023 Aug 1:15:1227325. doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2023.1227325. eCollection 2023.

Authors

Ye Zhang¹, Yasuko Tatewaki^{1

2}, Taizen Nakase^{1

2}, Yingxu Liu¹, Naoki Tomita^{1

2}, Benjamin Thyreau³, Haixia Zheng⁴, Michiho Muranaka^{1

2}, Yumi Takano^{1

2}, Tatsuo Nagasaka⁵, Yasuyuki Taki^{1

2

3}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Aging Research and Geriatric Medicine, Institute of Development, Aging and Cancer, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
² Department of Geriatric Medicine and Neuroimaging, Tohoku University Hospital, Sendai, Japan.
³ Smart-Aging Research Center, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan.
⁴ Laureate Institute for Brain Research, Tulsa, OK, United States.
⁵ Division of Radiology, Tohoku University Hospital, Sendai, Japan.

Abstract

Introduction: Present study was to investigate hs-CRP concentration, brain structural alterations, and cognitive function in the context of AD [Subjective cognitive decline (SCD), mild cognitive impairment (MCI), and AD].

Methods: We retrospectively included 313 patients (Mean age = 76.40 years, 59 SCD, 101 MCI, 153 AD) in a cross-sectional analysis and 91 patients (Mean age = 75.83 years, 12 SCD, 43 MCI, 36 AD) in a longitudinal analysis. Multivariable linear regression was conducted to investigate the relationship between hs-CRP concentration and brain structural alterations, and cognitive function, respectively.

Results: Hs-CRP was positively associated with gray matter volume in the left fusiform (β = 0.16, p_FDR = 0.023) and the left parahippocampal gyrus (β = 0.16, p_FDR = 0.029). Post hoc analysis revealed that these associations were mainly driven by patients with MCI and AD. The interaction of diagnosis and CRP was significantly associated with annual cognitive changes (β = 0.43, p = 0.008). Among these patients with AD, lower baseline CRP was correlated with greater future cognitive decline (r = -0.41, p = 0.013).

Conclusion: Our study suggests that increased hs-CRP level may exert protective effect on brain structure alterations and future cognitive changes among patients already with cognitive impairment.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; C-reactive protein; FreeSurfer; gray matter volume; subjective cognitive decline; systemic inflammation.

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Advanced Graduate Program for Future Medicine and Health Care, Tohoku University, Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research from the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (18K15580, 19K111637, and 21K07665), and TUMUG Support Project (Project to Promote Gender Equality and Female Researchers) of Tohoku University. This work was partly supported by the JST COI Grant Number JPMJCE1303. Per contractual agreement, the funder had no role in the design of the study, in the collection, analysis, and interpretation of data, in the writing of the report, or in the decision to submit the article for publication.