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.

37/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 37 out of 100. Genetics

Topic: Amyloid, tau and blood-test diagnosis

After adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, APOE ε4, and physical activity, a greater multimorbidity burden (per 3 additional conditions) was associated with worse overall cognition (standardized β = -0.074, 95%CI -0.104 to -0.043) and biomarkers indicative of greater AD pathology, neurodegeneration, and SVD (Figure 1). The direct association between multimorbidity and cognition was attenuated (standardized β = 0.024, 95%CI -0.023 to 0.071) after accounting for the mediating pathways (Figure 2). SEM showed that the association between multimorbidity and worse cognition was primarily mediated by neurodegeneration (74%, standardized β = -0.072, 95%CI -0.109 to -0.035) and partially by AD pathology (22%, standardized β = -0.022, 95%CI -0.038 to -0.005), after multivariable adjustment. Among dementia-free individuals, greater multimorbidity burden was associated with biomarkers indicative of greater AD pathology, neurodegeneration, and cerebral SVD. Multimorbidity may contribute to cognition via both neurodegeneration and AD pathways.

Key findings

After adjusting for age, sex, race/ethnicity, education, APOE ε4, and physical activity, a greater multimorbidity burden (per 3 additional conditions) was associated with worse overall cognition (standardized β = -0.074, 95%CI -0.104 to -0.043) and biomarkers indicative of greater AD pathology, neurodegeneration, and SVD (Figure 1).
The direct association between multimorbidity and cognition was attenuated (standardized β = 0.024, 95%CI -0.023 to 0.071) after accounting for the mediating pathways (Figure 2).
SEM showed that the association between multimorbidity and worse cognition was primarily mediated by neurodegeneration (74%, standardized β = -0.072, 95%CI -0.109 to -0.035) and partially by AD pathology (22%, standardized β = -0.022, 95%CI -0.038 to -0.005), after multivariable adjustment.
Among dementia-free individuals, greater multimorbidity burden was associated with biomarkers indicative of greater AD pathology, neurodegeneration, and cerebral SVD.
Multimorbidity may contribute to cognition via both neurodegeneration and AD pathways.

Why it matters

This pathway analysis found that a greater multimorbidity burden was associated with worse overall cognition and with biomarkers of greater Alzheimer disease pathology, neurodegeneration, and small vessel disease. The association between multimorbidity and worse cognition was primarily mediated by neurodegeneration and partially by Alzheimer disease pathology.

New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Genetics →

Study details

Evidence strengthModerate

How this study scored 37/100

Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	7 / 10	Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Alzheimer s & Dementia)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	Alzheimer s & Dementia: journal h-index 228 (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	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 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 / 4	Last-listed author Kristine S. Yaffe: h-index 155 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	2 / 3	University of California, San Francisco: institution h-index 1,915 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	1 / 3	OpenAlex lists 3 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41434402)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	37 / 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).

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

Jiang, X., O’Bryant, S. E., Rissman, R. A., Johnson, L. A., Braskie, M. N., & Yaffe, K. S. (2025). Multimorbidity, Cognition, and Alzheimer Disease Biomarkers: A Pathway Analysis. Alzheimer s & Dementia. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz70862_110144

Vancouver

Jiang X, O’Bryant SE, Rissman RA, Johnson LA, Braskie MN, Yaffe KS. Multimorbidity, Cognition, and Alzheimer Disease Biomarkers: A Pathway Analysis. Alzheimer s & Dementia. 2025. doi:10.1002/alz70862_110144. PMID: 41434402.

BibTeX

@article{jiang2025-41434402,
  author  = {Jiang, Xiaqing and O’Bryant, Sid E. and Rissman, Robert A. and Johnson, Leigh A and Braskie, Meredith N. and Yaffe, Kristine S.},
  title   = {{Multimorbidity, Cognition, and Alzheimer Disease Biomarkers: A Pathway Analysis}},
  journal = {Alzheimer s \& Dementia},
  year    = {2025},
  doi     = {10.1002/alz70862_110144},
  pmid    = {41434402},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1002/alz70862_110144}
}

Related studies in Genetics

Also tagged “biomarkers”

821 studies in the library carry the topic tag “biomarkers”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 821 tagged studies.

Similar studies

More on Genetics

See all studies in Genetics →