Journal
JOURNAL OF ALZHEIMERS DISEASE
Volume 48, Issue 1, Pages 261-277Publisher
IOS PRESS
DOI: 10.3233/JAD-150199
Keywords
Age-related macular degeneration; biomarker; cognitive function; lutein; macular pigment; zeaxanthin
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Funding
- European Research Council (ERC) [281096]
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Background: Macular pigment (MP) levels correlate with brain concentrations of lutein (L) and zeaxanthin (Z), and have also been shown to correlate with cognitive performance in the young and elderly. Objective: To investigate the relationship between MP, serum concentrations of L and Z, and cognitive function in subjects free of retinal disease with low MP (Group 1, n = 105) and in subjects with AMD (Group 2, n = 121). Methods: MP was measured using customized heterochromatic flicker photometry and dual-wavelength autofluorescence; cognitive function was assessed using a battery of validated cognition tests; serum L and Z concentrations were determined by HPLC. Results: Significant correlations were evident between MP and various measures of cognitive function in both groups (r = -0.273 to 0.261, p <= 0.05, for all). Both serum L and Z concentrations correlated significantly (r = 0.187, p <= 0.05 and r = 0.197, p <= 0.05, respectively) with semantic (animal) fluency cognitive scores in Group 2 (the AMD study group), while serum L concentrations also correlated significantly with Verbal Recognition Memory learning slope scores in the AMD study group (r = 0.200, p = 0.031). Most of the correlations with MP, but not serum L or Z, remained significant after controlling for age, gender, diet, and education level. Conclusion: MP offers potential as a non-invasive clinical biomarker of cognitive health, and appears more successful in this role than serum concentrations of L or Z.
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