Impact of circulating levels of endocrine disrupting toxicants on cognition, brain activity and Alzheimer's disease biomarkers across the menopausal transition - Project Summary Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder that severely hinders quality of life. It is the leading cause of dementia in the elderly, and disproportionately affects women. Not only are women more likely to be diagnosed with AD, but when they are, they show steeper rates of episodic memory decline, the hallmark clinical symptom of AD, and higher levels of brain-based pathology, both in life and postmortem. By capitalizing upon recent technical advancements in toxicological and steroid hormone assay techniques, this project will test whether, when and how exposure to endocrine disrupting persistent organic pollutants during the menopausal transition modifies cognition, brain activity and blood-based AD biomarkers. The results of this study will have important implications for our understanding of potentially modifiable factors that impart increased risk for AD, as well as the causes and consequences of sex-based disparities in this devastating neurological disease.
