This page is alzhub.org's plain-English summary of a published study, not the paper itself. It is generated from the record we hold for this study, sourced and linked below — check the original for the full text and methods.

79/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 79 out of 100. Biomarkers

Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis

Plain-language summary

Concentrations of amyloid-beta (Aβ)(42) in the CSF appeared to decline 25 years before expected symptom onset. Aβ deposition, as measured by positron-emission tomography with the use of Pittsburgh compound B, was detected 15 years before expected symptom onset. Increased concentrations of tau protein in the CSF and an increase in brain atrophy were detected 15 years before expected symptom onset. Cerebral hypometabolism and impaired episodic memory were observed 10 years before expected symptom onset. Global cognitive impairment, as measured by the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Clinical Dementia Rating scale, was detected 5 years before expected symptom onset, and patients met diagnostic criteria for dementia at an average of 3 years after expected symptom onset. We found that autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease was associated with a series of pathophysiological changes over decades in CSF biochemical markers of Alzheimer's disease, brain amyloid deposition, and brain metabolism as well as progressive cognitive impairment. Our results require confirmation with the use of longitudinal data and may not apply to patients with sporadic Alzheimer's disease. (Funded by the National Institute on Aging and others; DIAN ClinicalTrials.gov number, NCT00869817.).

What this study adds

Evidence grade: Moderate

This is a cross-sectional study of 128 participants. The authors note these results require confirmation with longitudinal data and may not apply to patients with sporadic Alzheimer's disease.

Taken from this record’s own fields, not from reading the paper. The grade is assigned from the abstract’s wording; what that means.

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

APA 7th

Bateman, R. J., Xiong, C., Benzinger, T. L., Fagan, A. M., Goate, A., Fox, N. C., et al. (2012). Clinical and Biomarker Changes in Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa1202753

Vancouver

Bateman RJ, Xiong C, Benzinger TL, Fagan AM, Goate A, Fox NC, et al. Clinical and Biomarker Changes in Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Disease. New England Journal of Medicine. 2012. doi:10.1056/nejmoa1202753. PMID: 22784036.

BibTeX

@article{bateman2012-22784036,
  author  = {Bateman, Randall John and Xiong, Chengjie and Benzinger, Tammie L.S. and Fagan, Anne M. and Goate, Alison and Fox, Nick C. and Marcus, Daniel S. and Cairns, Nigel J. and others},
  title   = {{Clinical and Biomarker Changes in Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer's Disease}},
  journal = {New England Journal of Medicine},
  year    = {2012},
  doi     = {10.1056/nejmoa1202753},
  pmid    = {22784036},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1056/nejmoa1202753}
}

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.

How to read this study

Design: this is a cross-sectional study. Everyone is measured once, so it cannot show which came first. Read it as a snapshot of how two things go together at one moment.
Size: the record lists 128 participants. Ask whether that is enough for the question, and who they were.
Effect: the record gives no effect size, so the summary above cannot say how large any difference was.

What the evidence grade means here

This page is graded moderate. alzhub.org assigns the grade automatically from keywords in the abstract, not from reading the paper. Moderate means the abstract mentions a cohort, case-control or longitudinal design. It can add at most 5 of the 100 points in the study score, and it is a label about design, not a verdict on whether the findings are true.

New to reading papers? Six questions to ask of any Alzheimer’s study · how we score.

Key findings

Concentrations of amyloid-beta (Aβ)(42) in the CSF appeared to decline 25 years before expected symptom onset.
Aβ deposition, as measured by positron-emission tomography with the use of Pittsburgh compound B, was detected 15 years before expected symptom onset.
Increased concentrations of tau protein in the CSF and an increase in brain atrophy were detected 15 years before expected symptom onset.
Cerebral hypometabolism and impaired episodic memory were observed 10 years before expected symptom onset.
Global cognitive impairment, as measured by the Mini-Mental State Examination and the Clinical Dementia Rating scale, was detected 5 years before expected symptom onset, and patients met diagnostic criteria for dementia at an average of 3 years after expected symptom onset.

Why it matters

In dominantly inherited Alzheimer's disease, declines in cerebrospinal fluid amyloid-beta 42 appeared 25 years before expected symptom onset, amyloid deposition and increased tau and brain atrophy 15 years before, cerebral hypometabolism and impaired episodic memory 10 years before, and global cognitive impairment 5 years before. The authors note these results require confirmation with longitudinal data and may not apply to patients with sporadic Alzheimer's disease.

New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Blood tests & biomarkers →

Study details

Study designcross-sectional
Participants128
Evidence strengthModerate

How this study scored 79/100

Published in a top-tier journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	10 / 10	Tier 1 — top-tier general journal (New England Journal of Medicine)
Journal's citation record	4 / 4	New England Journal of Medicine: journal h-index 1,505 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	4 / 12	A snapshot of people at one point in time
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	1 / 5	2012 — within 20 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	2 / 4	128 participants
Effect reported	0 / 3	No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomized / blinded	0 / 2	No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	7 / 7	Cited 3,810 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	5 / 5	238.1 citations a year over 16 year(s) since 2012
Impact for its field and year	6 / 6	Cited 152.7× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	6 / 6	Cited by 266 other studies in this library
Still being cited	4 / 4	Cited 790 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	4 / 4	Last-listed author John C. Morris: h-index 209 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	3 / 3	Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex)
Multicenter collaboration	3 / 3	OpenAlex lists 20 institution(s) in 3 countries
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 22784036)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	79 / 100	—

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).

Studies in the library that share something with this one. The line above each title says what.

Studies this one cites

Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here. Showing 12 of 19.

Later studies that cite this one

266 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references. Showing the 8 highest-scoring.

Related studies in Biomarkers from nearby years

Also in Biomarkers

147 studies in the library are filed under Biomarkers with no topic tag they share with another; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed tour of them. The Biomarkers hub.

Similar studies

More on Biomarkers

See all studies in Biomarkers →