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Primary age-related tauopathy
Timothy E. Richardson, Jamie M. Walker, Kurt W. Farrell, Tiago Gil Oliveira, Charles L. White, John F. Crary. Acta Neuropathologica, 2025-10-09
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
Primary age-related tauopathy (PART) was proposed in 2014 as a neuropathological term to describe patients with Alzheimer's-type medial temporal lobe neurofibrillary degeneration in the absence of significant β-amyloid pathology. Over the past decade, this designation has gained widespread adoption, helping to clarify the interpretation of biomarker profiles, delineate early-stage tauopathy in aging, and differentiate non-Alzheimer tauopathies from aging and classical Alzheimer disease. This review revisits PART ten years following its conception, critically evaluating its neuropathological features, clinical correlates, molecular underpinnings, and current limitations. We synthesize recent advances in neuroimaging, biomarkers, genetics, and epidemiology, explore the relationship between PART and other age-associated neurodegenerative processes, and propose revisions to the original PART criteria. While PART has served as a valuable framework for studying tau pathology in aging, key questions remain regarding its pathogenesis, clinical significance, and relationship to the broader spectrum of tauopathies. We highlight major gaps in knowledge and outline priorities for future research aimed at defining the mechanisms, biomarkers, and clinical criteria that will determine whether PART represents a distinct disease or a universal feature of human brain aging.
Key findings
- Primary age-related tauopathy (PART) was proposed in 2014 as a neuropathological term to describe patients with Alzheimer's-type medial temporal lobe neurofibrillary degeneration in the absence of significant β-amyloid pathology.
Why it matters
This review revisits a 2014 term for Alzheimer's-type tau tangles that occur without significant amyloid, and it proposes revisions to the original criteria. It states that key questions remain about whether this is a distinct disease or a universal feature of brain aging, so no treatment or prevention is established.
Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 50/100
Published in a leading specialty 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 | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Acta Neuropathologica) |
| Journal's citation record | 3 / 4 | Acta Neuropathologica: journal h-index 287 (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 | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” 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 | 3 / 7 | Cited 17 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 2 / 5 | 5.7 citations a year over 3 year(s) since 2025 |
| Impact for its field and year | 4 / 6 | Cited 9.3× 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 | 2 / 4 | Cited 17 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 3 / 4 | Last-listed author John F. Crary: h-index 51 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | The University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center: institution h-index 1,356 (OpenAlex) |
| Multi-centre collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 4 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41065841) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 50 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.1007/s00401-025-02943-x
- PubMed: 41065841
- Original source →
- Free full text: Acta Neuropathologica →
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
Richardson, T. E., Walker, J. M., Farrell, K. W., Oliveira, T. G., White, C. L., & Crary, J. F. (2025). Primary age-related tauopathy. Acta Neuropathologica. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-025-02943-x
Vancouver
Richardson TE, Walker JM, Farrell KW, Oliveira TG, White CL, Crary JF. Primary age-related tauopathy. Acta Neuropathologica. 2025. doi:10.1007/s00401-025-02943-x. PMID: 41065841.
BibTeX
@article{richardson2025-41065841,
author = {Richardson, Timothy E. and Walker, Jamie M. and Farrell, Kurt W. and Oliveira, Tiago Gil and White, Charles L. and Crary, John F.},
title = {{Primary age-related tauopathy}},
journal = {Acta Neuropathologica},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1007/s00401-025-02943-x},
pmid = {41065841},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1007/s00401-025-02943-x}
}
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