The NIH toolbox emotion battery and cerebrospinal fluid biomarkers in Alzheimer’s disease: findings from the multisite ARMADA study

ObjectivesInvestigating the relationships between socioemotional functioning and Alzheimer’s disease (AD) pathology can contribute to screening and early detection of AD. This study explored the associations between socioemotional functioning and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) AD biomarkers in older adults.MethodsWe used baseline data from the Advancing Reliable Measurement in Alzheimer’s Disease and Cognitive Aging (ARMADA) study. ARMADA is a multisite study with independent protocols for CSF assays at each site. The available sample size with comparable CSF assays had 31 participants with normal cognition (NC, mean age 72.6) and 28 with amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI) or early-stage AD dementia (mean age 72.2). CSF-derived AD biomarkers included were: phosphorylated-tau 181 (p-Tau181), total tau (t-Tau), Aβ42, Aβ42/40 ratio, and p-Tau181/Aβ42 ratio. Socioemotional functioning (negative affect, psychological well-being, and social satisfaction) was measured with the self-reported NIH Toolbox Emotion Battery (NIHTB-EB). We ran linear regressions by cognitive subgroups (NC and aMCI/early-stage AD).ResultsAmong participants with NC, lower social satisfaction was associated with higher p-Tau181 and t-Tau; higher t-Tau was additionally associated with more negative affect. None of the CSF AD biomarkers were associated with the NIHTB-EB outcomes among participants with aMCI or early-stage AD.DiscussionThese findings suggest that socioemotional functioning may be associated with tau pathology. Amyloid markers were not associated with socioemotional functioning in either cognitive group. Future studies with larger, more diverse samples and harmonized CSF assay protocols are needed to further investigate the role of socioemotional changes in the early detection and prevention of dementia.