Self-Reported Physical Activity is Associated with Tau Burden Measured by Positron Emission Tomography.
Numerous animal studies have reported exercise reduces the accumulation of Alzheimer's disease pathology, including amyloid-β (Aβ) and tau. Furthermore, we previously reported a relationship between higher levels of physical activity (PA) and lower brain Aβ burden in a human population. The recent advent of tau positron emission tomography (PET) tracers enables us to extend our investigations into the evaluation of the relationship between PA and brain tau burden. Utilizing data from the Australian Imaging, Biomarkers and Lifestyle (AIBL) study, we have examined the cross-sectional relationship between habitual PA and PET-quantified tau burden. Forty-three cognitively healthy older adults were categorized into low-moderate PA (LMPA; n = 16) or high PA (HPA; n = 27), based on self-reported PA levels. Tau PET imaging with the AV1451 tracer was conducted on all participants. The LMPA group had significantly higher neocortical tau burden (presented as a z-score; 1.22±1.98), compared to the HPA group (z-score: - 0.28±1.18). The difference between the LMPA and HPA groups was also evident when examining regional tau burden in the temporoparietal cortex and the prefrontal cortex. Our results suggest an association between self-reported PA level and brain tau burden. Future longitudinal and interventional studies utilizing larger samples sizes are vital to further investigate the nature of the relationship between tau and PA.
['Brown|Belinda M|BM|', 'Rainey-Smith|Stephanie R|SR|', 'Dore|Vincent|V|', 'Peiffer|Jeremiah J|JJ|', 'Burnham|Samantha C|SC|', 'Laws|Simon M|SM|', 'Taddei|Kevin|K|', 'Ames|David|D|', 'Masters|Colin L|CL|', 'Rowe|Christopher C|CC|', 'Martins|Ralph N|RN|', 'Villemagne|Victor L|VL|']
D000368:Aged D000369:Aged, 80 and over D000814:Aniline Compounds D001057:Apolipoproteins E D001315:Australia D002540:Cerebral Cortex D015331:Cohort Studies D015444:Exercise D005260:Female D006801:Humans D016014:Linear Models D008297:Male D008875:Middle Aged D049268:Positron-Emission Tomography D057566:Self Report D013844:Thiazoles D016875:tau Proteins
physical activity tau positron emission tomography Alzheimer’s disease