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Association of neighborhood deprivation with Alzheimer's Disease pathology, brain structure, and cognition by race and ethnicity, sex, and APOE ε4 status
Aguilar-Dominguez Pablo, Colceriu Carmen-Maria, Holland Thomas Monroe, Lockhart Samuel N, Masdeu Joseph C, Vasconcellos Neumann Lycia Tramujas, Snyder Heather M, Baker Laura D et al.. medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences, 2026-05-18
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
We investigated associations of neighborhood disadvantage with Alzheimer's Disease (AD)-related outcomes by biological and social factors in at-risk older adults. 1,880 U.S. POINTER participants with Area Deprivation Index (ADI) and cognition (PACC) were included. 868 had amyloid, tau PET, white matter hyperintensities (WMH), and/or gray matter volumes. We conducted exploratory, linear models testing ADI interactions with sex, race and ethnicity, and APOE ε4, adjusting for age and education. "White/European American", "Hispanic/Latinx/Spanish" and "Others" showed lower cognitive scores with higher ADI, while "White/European American" showed the highest cognitive scores across ADI levels. APOE ε4 carriers from high-ADI areas showed higher WMH and tau, and "Hispanic/Latinx/Spanish" from more deprived areas showed higher WMH. Females from moderate-ADI areas showed higher tau. Amyloid burden was higher in APOE ε4 carriers from low-ADI areas. Differential associations of ADI with AD-related outcomes across biological and social factors may reflect systemic health disparities and study design.
Key findings
- We conducted exploratory, linear models testing ADI interactions with sex, race and ethnicity, and APOE ε4, adjusting for age and education. "White/European American", "Hispanic/Latinx/Spanish" and "Others" showed lower cognitive scores with higher ADI, while "White/European American" showed the hig
- APOE ε4 carriers from high-ADI areas showed higher WMH and tau, and "Hispanic/Latinx/Spanish" from more deprived areas showed higher WMH.
- Females from moderate-ADI areas showed higher tau.
- Amyloid burden was higher in APOE ε4 carriers from low-ADI areas.
- Differential associations of ADI with AD-related outcomes across biological and social factors may reflect systemic health disparities and study design.
Why it matters
This exploratory study found that higher neighborhood deprivation was linked to lower cognitive scores in some groups, and APOE ε4 carriers from high-deprivation areas showed higher white matter hyperintensities and tau. It reports associations with social disadvantage, not any treatment, cure, or prevention.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 16/100
Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. It scored 21 on the same rubric, but non-peer-reviewed sources are capped at 16, so it shows as 16. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on impact for its field and year and senior author's track record, so those were left out: it earned 19 of the 90 points we could judge it on, which is 21 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 2 / 10 | Tier 4 — not a peer-reviewed journal (medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | Not a journal article, so the journal's record does not count |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 4 / 10 | Preprint — not yet peer-reviewed. Hosted on a preprint server. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 0 / 7 | Cited 0 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 0 / 5 | 0.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 0 / 4 | Cited 0 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | OpenAlex's profile for last-listed author E. Urquijo holds only 8 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | 2 / 3 | University of California, Berkeley: institution h-index 2,012 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 3 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 11 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42145634) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 19 / 90 | Scored on 18 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 19 of the 90 points we could judge it on is 21 out of 100. |
| Total | 21 / 100 | Capped to 16 because this is not a peer-reviewed article. |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Pablo, A.-D., Carmen-Maria, C., Monroe, H. T., Lockhart Samuel, N., Masdeu Joseph, C., Tramujas, V. N. L., et al. (2026). Association of neighborhood deprivation with Alzheimer's Disease pathology, brain structure, and cognition by race and ethnicity, sex, and APOE ε4 status. medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences. https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.05.05.26352370
Vancouver
Pablo A.-D, Carmen-Maria C, Monroe HT, Lockhart Samuel N, Masdeu Joseph C, Tramujas VNL, et al. Association of neighborhood deprivation with Alzheimer's Disease pathology, brain structure, and cognition by race and ethnicity, sex, and APOE ε4 status. medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences. 2026. doi:10.64898/2026.05.05.26352370. PMID: 42145634.
BibTeX
@article{pablo2026-42145634,
author = {Pablo, Aguilar-Dominguez and Carmen-Maria, Colceriu and Monroe, Holland Thomas and Lockhart Samuel, N. and Masdeu Joseph, C. and Tramujas, Vasconcellos Neumann Lycia and Snyder Heather, M. and Baker Laura, D. and others},
title = {{Association of neighborhood deprivation with Alzheimer's Disease pathology, brain structure, and cognition by race and ethnicity, sex, and APOE ε4 status}},
journal = {medRxiv : the preprint server for health sciences},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.64898/2026.05.05.26352370},
pmid = {42145634},
url = {https://doi.org/10.64898/2026.05.05.26352370}
}
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