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The Relation Between Personality and Biomarkers in Sensitivity and Conversion to Alzheimer-Type Dementia

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  11 December 2019

Janet M. Duchek Open the ORCID record for Janet M. Duchek [Opens in a new window] ,
Andrew J. Aschenbrenner ,
Anne M. Fagan ,
Tammie L.S. Benzinger ,
John C. Morris  and
David A. Balota
Janet M. Duchek*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63130, USA
Andrew J. Aschenbrenner
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA The Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA
Anne M. Fagan
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA The Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA
Tammie L.S. Benzinger
Affiliation:
The Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA Department of Radiology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA Department of Neurological Surgery, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA
John C. Morris
Affiliation:
Department of Neurology, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA The Knight Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63110, USA
David A. Balota
Affiliation:
Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO63130, USA
*
*Correspondence and reprint requests to: Janet Duchek, Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Washington University in St. Louis, St. Louis, MO 63130, USA. E-mail: jduchek@wustl.edu
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Abstract

Objectives:

The present study explored relationships among personality, Alzheimer’s disease (AD) biomarkers, and dementia by addressing the following questions: (1) Does personality discriminate healthy aging and earliest detectable stage of AD? (2) Does personality predict conversion from healthy aging to early-stage AD? (3) Do AD biomarkers mediate any observed relationships between personality and dementia status/conversion?

Methods:

Both self- and informant ratings of personality were obtained in a large well-characterized longitudinal sample of cognitively normal older adults (N = 436) and individuals with early-stage dementia (N = 74). Biomarkers included amyloid imaging, hippocampal volume, cerebral spinal fluid (CSF) Aβ42, and CSF tau.

Results:

Higher neuroticism, lower conscientiousness, along with all four biomarkers strongly discriminated cognitively normal controls from early-stage AD individuals. The direct effects of neuroticism and conscientiousness were only mediated by hippocampal volume. Conscientiousness along with all biomarkers predicted conversion from healthy aging to early-stage AD; however, none of the biomarkers mediated the relationship between conscientiousness and conversion. Conscientiousness predicted conversion as strongly as the biomarkers, with the exception of hippocampal volume.

Conclusions:

Conscientiousness and to a lesser extent neuroticism serve as important independent behavioral markers for AD risk.

Keywords

Alzheimer’s diseasePersonalityBiomarkersDementiaAgingOlder adults
Type
Regular Research
Information
Journal of the International Neuropsychological Society , Volume 26 , Issue 6 , July 2020 , pp. 596 - 606
Copyright
Copyright © INS. Published by Cambridge University Press, 2019

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