Nearly 7 million Americans live with Alzheimer’s disease, a number expected to double by 2060.
While aging and genetics are the most significant risk factors, new research shows that lifestyle choices, including alcohol use, may also play a role in how the disease starts and progresses.
Scientists at Scripps Research have discovered that Alzheimer’s and alcohol use disorder (AUD) share similar patterns of altered gene activity in the brain.
Their findings, published in eNeuro on September 19, 2024, suggest that heavy alcohol use could worsen Alzheimer’s by affecting some of the same brain pathways.
This groundbreaking study could help shape future prevention and treatment strategies.
“We found specific genes and pathways that are disrupted in both Alzheimer’s and alcohol use disorder,” explains Dr. Pietro Paolo Sanna, senior author of the study and professor at Scripps Research.
“This suggests that AUD may speed up Alzheimer’s by targeting the same molecular mechanisms.”
To uncover these links, the team used a cutting-edge method called single-cell transcriptomics, which examines gene activity in individual brain cells by analyzing their RNA. This is the first time this method has been used to compare the effects of Alzheimer’s and AUD on different brain cell types.
The researchers studied data from hundreds of thousands of brain cells from 75 people at various stages of Alzheimer’s—early, intermediate, and advanced—and 10 people without Alzheimer’s. They compared this data to gene expression information from previous studies on people with AUD.
The results showed similar changes in the brains of those with Alzheimer’s and AUD. Both conditions were linked to higher activity of inflammatory genes, disrupted cell signaling, pathways related to cell death, and changes in blood vessel cells.
“These shared patterns give us clues about how Alzheimer’s progresses and highlight the need to consider alcohol use disorder as a potential risk factor for the disease,” says Dr. Arpita Joshi, lead author of the study.
However, the study had limitations, including a small sample size for the AUD data. The researchers plan to revisit their findings with larger datasets expected to be available soon. “This is a global effort to understand complex diseases like Alzheimer’s and AUD at the cellular level,” says Joshi.
The findings are a step forward in understanding how lifestyle factors like alcohol use may affect Alzheimer’s and could help identify new treatment targets. As researchers continue to explore these connections, they hope to develop better tools to protect brain health and combat cognitive decline.
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