Home › Research › Biomarkers
Divergent Cortical Tau Positron Emission Tomography Patterns Among Patients With Preclinical Alzheimer Disease
Young CB, Winer JR, Younes K, Cody KA, Betthauser TJ, Johnson SC, Schultz A, Sperling RA et al.. JAMA neurology, 2022-06-01
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Results The 447 A4 participants (A+ group, 392; and normal β-amyloid group, 55), with a mean (SD) age of 71.8 (4.8) years, included 239 women (54%). Across the A+T cortical+ and A+T MTL+ groups, increased regional tau was associated with reduced hippocampal volume and MTL thickness but not with cortical thickness. Conclusions and relevance This study suggests that early tau deposition may follow multiple trajectories during preclinical AD and may involve several cortical regions.
Key findings
- Results The 447 A4 participants (A+ group, 392; and normal β-amyloid group, 55), with a mean (SD) age of 71.8 (4.8) years, included 239 women (54%).
- Across the A+T cortical+ and A+T MTL+ groups, increased regional tau was associated with reduced hippocampal volume and MTL thickness but not with cortical thickness.
- Conclusions and relevance This study suggests that early tau deposition may follow multiple trajectories during preclinical AD and may involve several cortical regions.
Why it matters
In preclinical Alzheimer disease, early tau deposition appeared to follow multiple trajectories and may involve several cortical regions, with increased regional tau linked to reduced hippocampal volume and medial temporal thickness. This is an observational imaging study and does not test any treatment, cure, or prevention.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Blood tests & biomarkers →
Study details
- Study designcross-sectional
- Participants447
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 63/100
Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for effect reported and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (JAMA neurology) |
| Journal's citation record | 2 / 4 | JAMA Neurology: journal h-index 235 (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 | 3 / 5 | 2022 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 2 / 4 | 447 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) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 4 / 7 | Cited 78 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 3 / 5 | 13.0 citations a year over 6 year(s) since 2022 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 9.0× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 2 / 6 | Cited by 3 other studies in this library |
| Still being cited | 3 / 4 | Cited 53 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 4 / 4 | Last-listed author Kewei Chen: h-index 110 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 3 / 3 | Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 8 institution(s) in 1 country |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 35435938) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Total | 63 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0676
- PubMed: 35435938
- Original source →
- Free full text: PubMed Central →
Full text: free to read — PubMed Central lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
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
Young, C. B., Winer, JR., Younes, K., Cody, K. A., Betthauser, T. J., Johnson, S. C., et al. (2022). Divergent Cortical Tau Positron Emission Tomography Patterns Among Patients With Preclinical Alzheimer Disease. JAMA neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0676
Vancouver
Young CB, Winer JR, Younes K, Cody KA, Betthauser TJ, Johnson SC, et al. Divergent Cortical Tau Positron Emission Tomography Patterns Among Patients With Preclinical Alzheimer Disease. JAMA neurology. 2022. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0676. PMID: 35435938.
BibTeX
@article{young2022-35435938,
author = {Young, C. B. and Winer, JR. and Younes, K. and Cody, K. A. and Betthauser, T. J. and Johnson, S. C. and Schultz, A. and Sperling, R. A. and others},
title = {{Divergent Cortical Tau Positron Emission Tomography Patterns Among Patients With Preclinical Alzheimer Disease}},
journal = {JAMA neurology},
year = {2022},
doi = {10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0676},
pmid = {35435938},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.0676}
}
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here. Showing 12 of 24.
Later studies that cite this one
3 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references.
Related studies in Biomarkers
Also tagged “phosphorylated”
732 studies in the library carry the topic tag “phosphorylated”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 732 tagged studies.