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Blood-brain barrier permeability changes and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer disease progression
Dougal Keighley, Tahnee Raworth. International Journal of Biology Sciences, 2025-06-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Roughly 32 million people worldwide live with Alzheimer disease, yet the vascular contributions to its progression remain incompletely mapped. This research investigated how Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) permeability shifts relate to neuroinflammatory marker profiles across early, moderate, and advanced stages of Alzheimer disease. A cohort of 94 participants 32 with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer pathology, 31 with moderate Alzheimer disease, and 31 age-matched cognitively healthy controls was recruited at the Kimberley Institute of Biological Sciences, Broome, Western Australia, between June 2021 and August 2023. Dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) quantified the BBB transfer constant (Ktrans) in hippocampal, cortical, and white-matter regions. Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) samples were assayed for tight-junction fragments (claudin-5, occludin), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), and a panel of cytokines including interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β). Hippocampal Ktrans values were 47.3% higher in the MCI group and 81.6% higher in the moderate-AD group relative to controls (p
Key findings
- This research investigated how Blood-Brain Barrier (BBB) permeability shifts relate to neuroinflammatory marker profiles across early, moderate, and advanced stages of Alzheimer disease.
- A cohort of 94 participants 32 with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) due to Alzheimer pathology, 31 with moderate Alzheimer disease, and 31 age-matched cognitively healthy controls was recruited at the Kimberley Institute of Biological Sciences, Broome, Western Australia, between June 2021 and August 2023.
- Dynamic contrast-enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE-MRI) quantified the BBB transfer constant (Ktrans) in hippocampal, cortical, and white-matter regions.
- Cerebrospinal Fluid (CSF) samples were assayed for tight-junction fragments (claudin-5, occludin), matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9), and a panel of cytokines including interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), and interleukin-1β (IL-1β).
- Hippocampal Ktrans values were 47.3% higher in the MCI group and 81.6% higher in the moderate-AD group relative to controls (p
Why it matters
In this cohort of 94 participants, hippocampal blood-brain barrier permeability was higher in mild cognitive impairment and moderate Alzheimer's disease than in controls, alongside neuroinflammatory marker changes. These findings map vascular and inflammatory changes across disease stages but do not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
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Study details
- Participants94
- Effect size47.3%; 81.6%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 35/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on senior author's track record and institution's track record, so those were left out: it earned 33 of the 93 points we could judge it on, which is 35 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (International Journal of Biology Sciences) |
| Journal's citation record | 0 / 4 | International Journal of Biology Sciences: journal h-index 5 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 3 / 5 | Rated “moderate” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 1 / 4 | 94 participants |
| Effect reported | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| Studied in people | 3 / 3 | Studied in people (participant count stated) |
| 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 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 0 / 6 | Cited 0.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| 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 Tahnee Raworth holds only 1 work(s), too few to judge a track record — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 0 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 0 institution(s) in 0 countries — scores zero (affiliation lists can be incomplete) |
| Indexed in PubMed | 1 / 2 | Not in PubMed, but has a DOI |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Points | 33 / 93 | Scored on 18 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 33 of the 93 points we could judge it on is 35 out of 100. |
| Total | 35 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.33545/26649926.2025.v7.i6g.778
- Original source →
- Free full text: International Journal of Biology Sciences →
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. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
APA 7th
Keighley, D., & Raworth, T. (2025). Blood-brain barrier permeability changes and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer disease progression. International Journal of Biology Sciences. https://doi.org/10.33545/26649926.2025.v7.i6g.778
Vancouver
Keighley D, Raworth T. Blood-brain barrier permeability changes and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer disease progression. International Journal of Biology Sciences. 2025. doi:10.33545/26649926.2025.v7.i6g.778.
BibTeX
@article{keighley2025-d2dc63f3,
author = {Keighley, Dougal and Raworth, Tahnee},
title = {{Blood-brain barrier permeability changes and neuroinflammation in Alzheimer disease progression}},
journal = {International Journal of Biology Sciences},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.33545/26649926.2025.v7.i6g.778},
url = {https://doi.org/10.33545/26649926.2025.v7.i6g.778}
}