Characterizing Initial Neuropathological Changes in Degus Brains During Alzheimers Disease Onset

Alzheimers disease (AD) remains a major neurodegenerative disorder with no effective therapy. Around 44 million people around the globe have AD, with more than 90% of these cases being late-onset and occurring sporadically. To date, current research struggles with an incomplete understanding of the pathogenesis of AD, a lack of reliable biomarkers to establish diagnosis, and ineffective treatments, highlighting significant gaps in the field. In this study, the initial changes in the brains of degus as AD begins to develop will be identified, and these findings will be compared with non-AD brains to pinpoint primary causative factors. It is hypothesized that early changes in the brain may trigger the development of further AD lesions. Before and at this time, methods include periodic MRI and PET scans, as well as liquid biopsies of blood and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to monitor biomarker levels and brain changes. 3D microscopy and multiplex fluorescent immunohistochemistry will further analyze AD biomarkers effects on astrocytes and microglia. The expected outcome is to understand the spatial distribution of AD biomarkers and glial response heterogeneity, with the long-term goal of developing therapeutic strategies to inhibit early AD progression.