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Hippocampal Volume Loss, Brain Amyloid Accumulation, and APOE Status in Cognitively Intact Elderly Subjects
Haller S, Montandon ML, Rodriguez C, Garibotto V, Herrmann FR, Giannakopoulos P.. Neuro-degenerative diseases, 2019-12-17
Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis
Background Hippocampal volume loss (HVL), PET-documented brain amyloid accumulation, and APOE-ε4 status are predictive biomarkers of the transition from mild cognitive impairment to Alzheimer disease (AD). In asymptomatic cases, the role of these biomarkers remains ambiguous. In contrast to the idea that HVL occurs in late phases of neurodegeneration, recent contributions indicate that it might occur before abnormal amyloid PET occurrence in elderly subjects and that its severity could be only marginally related to APOE variants. Using a longitudinal design, we examined the determinants of HVL in our sample, i.e., brain amyloid burden and the presence of APOE-ε4, and made a longitudinal assessment of cognitive functions. Methods We performed a 4.5-year longitudinal study on 81 elderly community dwellers (all right-handed;, 48 (59.3%) women; mean age 73.7 ± 3.7 years) including MRI at baseline and follow-up, PET amyloid during follow-up, neuropsychological assessment at 18 and 54 months, and APOE genotyping. All cases were assessed using a continuous cognitive score (CCS) that took into account the global evolution of neuropsychological performance. Linear regression models were used to identify predictors of HVL. Results There was a negative association between the CCS and HVL bilaterally. In multivariate models adjusting for demographic variables, the presence of APOE-ε4 was related to increased HVL bilaterally. A trend of significance was observed with respect to the impact of amyloid positivity on HVL in the left hemisphere. No significant interaction was found between amyloid positivity and the APOE-ε4 allele. Conclusion The progressive decrement of neuropsychological performance is associated with HVL long before the emergence of clinically overt symptoms. In this cohort of healthy individuals, the presence of the APOE-ε4 allele was shown to be an independent predictor of worst hippocampal integrity in asymptomatic cases independently of amyloid positivity.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Haller, S., Montandon, M. L., Rodriguez, C., Garibotto, V., Herrmann, F. R., & Giannakopoulos, P. (2019). Hippocampal Volume Loss, Brain Amyloid Accumulation, and APOE Status in Cognitively Intact Elderly Subjects. Neuro-degenerative diseases. https://doi.org/10.1159/000504302
Vancouver
Haller S, Montandon ML, Rodriguez C, Garibotto V, Herrmann FR, Giannakopoulos P. Hippocampal Volume Loss, Brain Amyloid Accumulation, and APOE Status in Cognitively Intact Elderly Subjects. Neuro-degenerative diseases. 2019. doi:10.1159/000504302. PMID: 31846965.
BibTeX
@article{haller2019-31846965,
author = {Haller, S. and Montandon, M. L. and Rodriguez, C. and Garibotto, V. and Herrmann, F. R. and Giannakopoulos, P.},
title = {{Hippocampal Volume Loss, Brain Amyloid Accumulation, and APOE Status in Cognitively Intact Elderly Subjects}},
journal = {Neuro-degenerative diseases},
year = {2019},
doi = {10.1159/000504302},
pmid = {31846965},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1159/000504302}
}
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.
Key findings
- In contrast to the idea that HVL occurs in late phases of neurodegeneration, recent contributions indicate that it might occur before abnormal amyloid PET occurrence in elderly subjects and that its severity could be only marginally related to APOE variants.
- Results There was a negative association between the CCS and HVL bilaterally.
- No significant interaction was found between amyloid positivity and the APOE-ε4 allele.
- Conclusion The progressive decrement of neuropsychological performance is associated with HVL long before the emergence of clinically overt symptoms.
Why it matters
In cognitively intact elderly people, declining neuropsychological performance was linked to loss of hippocampal volume over 4.5 years, with no significant interaction found between amyloid positivity and the APOE-ε4 allele. This is about understanding markers of early change, not about treating, curing, or preventing Alzheimer's.
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Study details
- Study designlongitudinal study
- Effect size59.3%
- Evidence strengthModerate
How this study scored 47/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal, and it is a longitudinal study following the same people over time. Scored zero for sample size, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, so that was left out: it earned 45 of the 96 points we could judge it on, which is 47 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Neuro-degenerative diseases) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 7 / 12 | A longitudinal study following the same people over 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 | 2 / 5 | 2019 — within 10 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 | 2 / 3 | Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test |
| 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 | 3 / 7 | Cited 16 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 1.8 citations a year over 9 year(s) since 2019 |
| Impact for its field and year | 2 / 6 | Cited 1.4× 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 | 1 / 4 | Cited 6 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author Pantéleimon Giannakopoulos: h-index 70 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Uppsala University: institution h-index 1,114 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 1 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 31846965) |
| Free to read | 0 / 2 | Behind a paywall — scores zero |
| Points | 45 / 96 | Scored on 19 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 45 of the 96 points we could judge it on is 47 out of 100. |
| Total | 47 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1159/000504302
- PubMed: 31846965
- Original source →
- Free full text: archive-ouverte.unige.ch →
Full text: free to read — Unpaywall lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 10 Oct 2026).
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