Spatiotemporal Correlation between Amyloid and Tau Accumulations Underlies Cognitive Changes in Aging

Motivation: It is poorly known how amyloid-beta (Aβ) and tau accumulations associate at the spatiotemporal level in the brain to impact cognitive changes in older adults prior to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Goal(s): This study aims to understand the spatiotemporal relationships between Aβ and tau topologies in the brain and the early cognitive changes in older adults. Approach: We investigate cortical patterns of Aβ and tau accumulations using graph theory-based longitudinal positron emission tomography (PET) imaging analysis and examined their effects on cognitive scores. Results: Spatiotemporal correlations between tau-to-tau and tau-Aβ accumulations are critical players in the emergence of cognitive changes in the aging brain. Impact: Our findings support using graph theory-based spatiotemporal analysis between Aβ and tau accumulations as an imaging marker for preclinical AD and have implications to understand the complex role of Aβ-tau interactions on cognitive decline prior to development of AD.