# Gut microbiome and blood indices in patients with AD and their spousal caregivers

> **NIH NIH R21** · UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA · 2024 · $201,875

## Abstract

Patients with Alzheimer’s disease (AD) have gut dysbiosis. Short chain fatty acids
(SCFAs) are products of gut microbiome. Among them, Acetate and valeric acid were found to
be positively correlated with the Aβ plaque load detected by amyloid PET in participants with or
without AD. However, the levels of SCFAs in the blood of patients with AD have not been
defined. Also, the usefulness of indices of inflammation and neuropathology in the blood as
biomarkers for cognitive impairment in patients with AD is elusive. Importantly, spousal
caregivers of patients with dementia have a higher risk of developing dementia later in life than
those whose spouses do not have dementia. The spousal caregivers have an accelerated
cognitive decline. The mechanisms for these phenomena are not known. We hypothesize that
spousal caregivers of patients with AD have gut microbiome and levels of blood SCFAs similar
to those of patients with AD, that these spouses have increased inflammatory cytokines and
indices of AD-like neuropathology in the blood, and that there is a correlation between the
cognition and various indices in the blood among patients with AD, their spouses and age-
matched controls. To address these hypotheses, we will recruit three groups of participants:
patients with AD, their spousal caregivers and controls that are age-matched with the
caregivers. Their gut microbiome and indices of neuroinflammation and neuropathology in the
blood will be determined. Their cognition will be assessed. The correction of cognition with gut
microbiome genera or indices in the blood will be analyzed. Our studies may represent first
study to determine whether gut microbiome and SCFAs may play a role in the cognitive
impairment in the spousal caregivers of patients with AD. These studies may also identify
biomarkers for cognitive impairment in these caregivers and patients with AD. These findings
may ultimately help the care of patients with AD and reduce the cognitive declines in spousal
caregivers of patients with AD.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10772082
- **Project number:** 5R21AG080377-02
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA
- **Principal Investigator:** Patrick Finan
- **Activity code:** R21 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $201,875
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2023-02-01 → 2025-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10772082

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10772082, Gut microbiome and blood indices in patients with AD and their spousal caregivers (5R21AG080377-02). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10772082. Licensed CC0.

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