Experts have made incredible strides in Alzheimer’s disease (AD) research since the official “Alzheimer’s disease” diagnosis was coined in 1910. To step into the future of disease treatment, researchers have to take stock of both past and present developments. AD is a complex disease requiring layered, multidisciplinary research. A new article led by Yale University’s Amy Arnsten, an international neuroscience expert, features key insights from multidisciplinary experts. Together, these experts provide a holistic look at the current state of AD research — along with the efforts that will drive the new treatments patients and their families so desperately need. The article was published on August 6 in the journal Alzheimer’s & Dementia.
A Holistic Look at the State of Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment in 2025
The article compiles insights from experts in virtually every discipline remotely related to AD research. In addition to Arnsten, the expert mentioned above, the article also contains updates from a group of brilliant minds spanning the globe, with research areas ranging from neuropathology and fluid biomarkers to basic preventive therapies. Together, these experts “provide an overview of the findings from each subfield — neuropathology, positron emission tomography imaging, fluid biomarkers, genetics, [and] transcriptomics” to paint a picture of the current state of AD treatment. Below are several highlights.
A New Biomarker for Tau Pathology in Alzheimer’s Disease
The paper includes a number of recent breakthroughs in early diagnostics. One key breakthrough is a new blood biomarker that can detect the beginnings of tau pathology, a hallmark of Alzheimer’s disease. As a blood biomarker, tau phosphorylated at residue Thr217 appears in the body long before doctors can use positron emission tomography (PET) imaging to see tau pathology in the brain. Not only will this biomarker serve as a diagnostic tool, but it will also enable experts to “track whether a new treatment is working,” according to the paper.
Clearing Amyloid Beta from the Brain
Another key finding involves clearing amyloid beta (Aβ) from the brain as a therapeutic measure. This physiological protein fragment can form harmful plaques in the brain, a hallmark of AD. The researchers write that two anti-amyloid monoclonal antibody treatments are now fully approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA): lecanemab and donanemab. “After decades of research to try to understand the etiology of AD, we are successfully translating scientific discoveries into treatments that can slow the course of AD,” the team wrote.
Improved Animal Models for Alzheimer’s Disease Diagnostics and Treatment
Much of the paper focuses on the use of aging macaques as an “ideal animal model for studying how age, inflammation, and APOE ε4 genotype lead to early-stage AD pathology.”
Macaques provide an excellent research model for several reasons. Like humans, macaques have well-developed association cortices with glutamatergic neurons expressing magnified calcium signaling. Additionally, they express a mixture of 3R/4R tau and show age-related increases in the above-mentioned new plasma biomarker pT217Tau. Plus, researchers have the ability to observe early-stage soluble pTau species in the macaque brain — species that are invisible in the human brain during the early phases of disease. The experts write that this may “help to explain the apparent gaps in the human data where fluid tau biomarkers appear very early, long before signs of fibrillated tau-PET in the brain.”
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In an interview published by Yale News, Arnsten explains that AD research has “expanded tremendously over the last decade.” She added, “After decades of research, the lessons we’ve learned about the brain changes that cause the disease are beginning to translate into FDA-approved treatments.” This is crucial because, as noted in the paper, increasing “cohesion across subdisciplines” in this expansive field will “strengthen understanding of this devastating disease,” leading to very real outcomes.
“We’re at a tipping point in Alzheimer’s research today where we have begun to have the first treatments for the disease, but we still have a long way to go,” Arnsten said in the interview cited above. “We need to keep pushing ahead to have more effective medications with fewer side effects.”
To test new compounds against Alzheimer’s disease, Scantox Neuro offers preclinical research services in various in vitro and in vivo models. These include models of amyloid plaque and tau pathology as well as other disease-relevant markers such as presenilin, pGlu Abeta, neuroinflammation, and many more. Contact us to discuss how Scantox Neuro can support your preclinical AD research.
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