ADAM10 as a cognitive frailty biomarker

Abstract

Increased life expectancy of the population gives rise to a growing concern among health services and the Government for the full monitoring of the elderly through the promotion, prevention and treatment of health. The frailty syndrome is quite prevalent in the elderly, in Brazil and worldwide. Frailty is conceptualized as a complex and heterogeneous clinical syndrome that can be identified by unintentional weight loss, exhaustion, weakness, decreased walking speed, balance and physical activity level. Each of these clinical manifestations is a predictor of a number of adverse events such as falls, hospitalization, institutionalization, functional decline and death. Cognitive frailty is a new concept in the literature and has been regarded as a subtype of frailty, which along with the aging process and its interaction with the physical frailty, accelerates functional decline cycle and result in poor quality of life of the elderly. Comorbidities and physical frailty are frequently found in patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD) and are closely related to the heterogeneity and clinical manifestations of the disease. Previous studies from our and other groups have shown platelet decreased levels of ADAM10 protein in AD patients, compared to control subjects without cognitive impairment, matched by sex, age and education. Based on these previous results, this project has the objective to evaluate whether platelet levels of ADAM10 in frail elderly individuals could act as a biomarker of cognitive frailty. The study will be conducted in the municipality of São Carlos, headquarters of the Federal University of São Carlos (UFSCar). Biological samples of the research subjects will be collected, analyzed and then stored in a biorepository. The ADAM10 platelet levels are analyzed by Western blotting technique in pre-frail and frail subjects compared to subjects without the presence of frailty. Statistical tests of association, regression and diagnostic accuracy will be performed. The results may contribute to the development of tools that work in the diagnosis of cognitive frailty. These tools can be used in public policies for prevention and control of fragility in the elderly, resulting in a more appropriate planning for the health teams and better quality of life for the elderly. (AU)