Selected Grantee Publications

Association of Age at Menopause and Hormone Therapy Use With Tau and β-Amyloid Positron Emission Tomography

Coughlan et al., JAMA Neurology. 2023.

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37010830/

To understand the predominance (70%) of women among individuals with Alzheimer’s disease, the investigators studied regional tau and β-amyloid (Aβ) in relation to age at menopause and hormone therapy (HT) in postmenopausal women and age-matched men using positron emission tomography. The study demonstrated that females exhibited higher tau deposition compared with age-matched males, particularly in the setting of elevated Aβ; earlier age at menopause and late initiation of HT were associated with increased tau vulnerability. This study suggests female individuals with these conditions may be at higher risk of pathological burden. Supported by ORIP (S10OD025245), NIA, and NICHD.