TDP-43 in AD/ADRD: Establish biomarkers and dementia risk profiles

AD-Related Dementias Focus

Develop biomarkers, classifiers, and risk profiles to establish in-vivo diagnostic criteria for LATE in persons without cognitive symptoms and in persons with amnestic or other relevant late-life dementia syndromes, assuring diversity, inclusion and equity.

2030 RFA-NS-19-014: Center without Walls for PET Ligand Development for Alzheimer's disease related dementias (ADRDs) (U19) 9.T In Progress Biomarker and risk profiles for TDP-43 DN 2019 ADRD Summit: Emerging Scientific Topics, Focus Area 1: TDP-43 Pathology in Common Dementias, Milestone 1 2022 ADRD Summit: MED Special Topic: LATE (TDP-43 in Common Late-Onset Dementias), Milestone 2, Priority 2 NIA blog: NCRAD: Increasing infrastructure for Alzheimer’s disease researchers Workshop: LATE 2022 Workshop: Gaps and Opportunities Related to Clinical Detection of Limbic-predominant Age-related TDP-43 Encephalopathy (LATE) Biomarkers Center without Walls for PET Ligand Development for Alzheimer's disease related dementias (ADRDs) (U19) National Centralized Repository for Alzheimer's Disease and Related Dementias (NCRAD)

  • At least three new projects to develop biomarker profiles for clinical trials for TDP-43 proteinopathy in common dementias.

Summary of Key Accomplishments

Currently, biomarkers that reveal pathological changes in TDP-43, a protein linked to various types of dementia, are needed across all stages of disease. NIH supports multiple funding opportunities to develop biomarkers for TDP-43 neuropathology. Recently, researchers showed that detection of extremely low levels of TDP-43 may be overcome by technological advances to amplify TDP-43 from cerebral spinal fluid or isolate it from plasma. Additionally, NIH supports the National Centralized Repository for Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias (NCRAD), which is a repository for biological specimens available to researchers to help identify disease genes and support biomarker development for AD/ADRDs, including for TDP-43.

The key accomplishments summary is current as of July 2022.