2024 Alzheimer's Association Research Grant (AARG)

Lifecourse Socioeconomic Factors and Plasma AD Biomarkers

How might a person’s neighborhood contribute to their risk of developing Alzheimer’s?

Anna Kucharska-Newton, Ph.D.
University of North Carolina
Chapel Hill, NC - United States

Background

According to the 2024 Alzheimer’s Disease Facts and Figures report, socioeconomic status has many health related consequences that are relevant to Alzheimer’s risk. Further, recent studies suggest that socioeconomic status is associated with changes in brain anatomy that may impact a person’s cognition. 

Socioeconomic status is typically defined as access to economic resources, such as income, education, and employment. These neighborhood factors all represent potential targets for interventions designed to reduce health disparities, particularly those related to Alzheimer’s risk. However, it’s not yet clear which environmental factors are most relevant to cognitive health and Alzheimer’s.

Research Plan

Dr. Kucharska-Newton has designed a study to understand how socioeconomic factors over the course of a lifetime may affect Alzheimer’s risk. Together with colleagues, Dr. Kucharska-Newton will analyze neighborhood and biological data collected from individuals enrolled in a long-term cardiovascular health study that began in 1987 called the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study. Importantly for this project, the ARIC study includes blood samples that have been collected and analyzed for Alzheimer’s biomarkers.

Dr. Kucharska-Newton and  team will examine associations between levels of the Alzheimer’s biomarkers and neighborhood factors from individuals from midlife to late-life. They will also examine these associations by sex and race. The researchers  will use U.S. Census Bureau data to determine whether the level of racial segregation in individual neighborhoods is associated with changes in Alzheimer’s biomarkers. Finally, the researchers will analyze other health and lifestyle factors (such as diabetes, hypertension, and physical activity levels) among individuals. They will examine connections between these factors and Alzheimer’s biomarker levels over a lifetime. By examining each of these factors separately, Dr. Kucharska-Newton and colleagues may better understand exactly which socioeconomic factors are associated with person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s.

Impact

This study provides an opportunity to identify actionable neighborhood characteristics that might be targeted by health interventions to delay, or slow cognitive decline. The specific focus on racial segregation may also add important evidence to the understanding of health disparities and differences in Alzheimer’s risk among racial and ethnic groups.