Abnormal amyloid and tau proteins may still be useful indicators of future Alzheimer's disease

The presence of abnormal amyloid and tau proteins may still be useful indicators of people most at risk of developing Alzheimer's, according to Australian and international research. The study showed that 33-to-83% of older people with abnormal amyloid and tau proteins developed Alzheimer's disease in two to three years, compared with less than 20% in other biomarker groups. That figure increased to 43-to-100% when they looked at people who also had some evidence of neurodegeneration. A recent report has suggested there was potential scientific misconduct in early Alzheimer’s studies which showed a link to these abnormal amyloid proteins. However, this study suggests the presence of abnormal amyloid and tau proteins may still be useful indications of people most at risk of developing Alzheimer's.