Recent Advancements in Alzheimer Disease Research Presented at AAIC 2024: Rebecca M. Edelmayer, PhD

WATCH TIME: 8 minutes

"We know these types of tools and technologies are going to revolutionize how we diagnose and even treat patients, as well as enroll them in clinical trials in the future."

At the 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference, July 28 to August 1, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, researchers presented some of the latest studies that show how the field of Alzheimer disease (AD) has advanced in what clinicians know about risk, diagnosis and treatment. According to a new release, this year’s conference had over 9300 registered attendees and included over 5260 scientific submissions.¹ Some of the presented studies at AAIC 2024 include the following:

• A new study showed that introduction of a high-performance blood test in primary care settings could potentially reduce wait times significantly and prevent eligible patients from falling outside the treatment window.²
• In a new retrospective open cohort study, results suggested that long-term exposure to PM2.5, both wildfire and non-wildfire, may be an important risk factor for dementia.³
• In a recent phase 2b trial assessing liraglutide (Novo Nordisk), a glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1) drug in patients with mild to moderate AD, the treatment showed a slower decline of temporal lobe volume and total grey matter volume compared with placebo in the MRI analysis.⁴

In a recent interview, Rebecca M. Edelmayer, PhD, vice president of scientific engagement at Alzheimer's Association, sat down with NeurologyLive^® to discuss some of these studies that were presented at the meeting. She talked briefly about how blood biomarker tests are expected to potentially revolutionize AD diagnosis and treatment, according to the one study. In addition, Edelmayer spoke about the potential brain health risks associated with exposure to wildfire smoke based on results from another study presented at the conference. Furthermore, she shared some of the promising results observed in the study assessing liraglutide for treating mild to moderate AD.

Click here for more coverage of AAIC 2024.

REFERENCES
1. Research Advances at the Alzheimer Association International Conference. News Release. Alzheimer Association. Published August 1, 2024. Accessed August 1, 2024.
2. Mattke S, et al. Impact of a High-Performing Blood Test on Wait Times for Determination of Eligibility for a Disease-Modifying Alzheimer’s Treatment in the U.S. Presented at: 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference; July 18 to August 1; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Abstract 91612.
3. Elser H, et al. Long-term Wildfire Smoke Exposure and Incident Dementia in a Large California Cohort. Presented at: 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference; July 18 to August 1; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Abstract 86179.
4. Edison P, et al. Evaluation of Novel GLP-1 analogue in the treatment of Alzheimer's disease. Presented at: 2024 Alzheimer’s Association International Conference; July 18 to August 1; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Abstract 89799.