Tear Biomarkers and Alzheimer's Disease

Abstract

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is an age-related progressive neurodegenerative brain disorder that represents the most common type of dementia. It poses a significant diagnostic challenge that requires timely recognition and treatment. Currently, there is no effective therapy for AD; however, certain medications may slow down its progression. The discovery of AD biomarkers, namely, magnetic resonance imaging, positron emission tomography and cerebrospinal fluid molecules (amyloid-β and tau) has advanced our understanding of this disease and has been crucial for identifying early neuropathologic changes prior to clinical changes and cognitive decline. The close interrelationship between the eye and the brain suggests that tears could be an interesting source of biomarkers for AD; however, studies in this area are limited. The identification of biomarkers in tears will enable the development of cost-effective, non-invasive methods of screening, diagnosis and disease monitoring. In order to use tears as a standard method for early and non-invasive diagnosis of AD, future studies need to be conducted on a larger scale.

Keywords: Alzheimer’s disease; biomarkers; dementia; early diagnosis; neurocognitive disorder; prognosis; tears.

Figure 1

Clinical and diagnostic features of Alzheimer’s disease. AD: Alzheimer’s disease; CT: computerized tomography; MRI: magnetic resonance imaging; PET: positron emission tomography; SPECT: single-photon emission computed tomography; Aβ: amyloid-beta; CSF: cerebrospinal fluid; APP: gene for amyloid precursor protein; APOE4: apolipoprotein E4 allele; PSEN1, PSEN2: presenilin gene 1 and 2; CSF: cerebrospinal fluid.