# Soluble P-tau217 reflects amyloid and tau pathology and mediates the association of amyloid with tau

Article · Mattsson-Carlgren N, Janelidze S, Bateman RJ, Smith R, Stomrud E, Serrano GE, Reiman EM, Palmqvist S, Dage JL, Beach TG, Hansson O

- Archive id: doi:10.15252/emmm.202114022
- Published: 2021-05-05
- Venue: EMBO molecular medicine
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.15252/emmm.202114022
- PMID: 33949133
- PMCID: PMC8185545
- Citations: 236
- Source URL: https://doi.org/10.15252/emmm.202114022
- PDF: https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC8185545/pdf
- Provenance: europepmc

## Abstract

Alzheimer's disease is characterized by β-amyloid plaques and tau tangles. Plasma levels of phospho-tau217 (P-tau217) accurately differentiate Alzheimer's disease dementia from other dementias, but it is unclear to what degree this reflects β-amyloid plaque accumulation, tau tangle accumulation, or both. In a cohort with post-mortem neuropathological data (N = 88), both plaque and tangle density contributed independently to higher P-tau217, but P-tau217 was not elevated in patients with non-Alzheimer's disease tauopathies (N = 9). Several findings were replicated in a cohort with PET imaging ("BioFINDER-2", N = 426), where β-amyloid and tau PET were independently associated with P-tau217. P-tau217 concentrations correlated with β-amyloid PET (but not tau PET) in early disease stages and with both β-amyloid and (more strongly) tau PET in late disease stages. Finally, P-tau217 mediated the association between β-amyloid and tau in both cohorts, especially for tau outside of the medial temporal lobe. These findings support the hypothesis that plasma P-tau217 concentration is increased by both β-amyloid plaques and tau tangles and is congruent with the hypothesis that P-tau is involved in β-amyloid-dependent formation of neocortical tau tangles.

_Abstract reproduced under CC-BY (article license as recorded by Europe PMC; abstract reproduced unmodified apart from markup removal)._

Topics: [Alzheimer's, Parkinson's & Neurodegeneration](https://space-kitty.com/topics/neurodegeneration)

Cited in dossiers:
- [Alzheimer's, Parkinson's & Neurodegeneration: State of the Field (October 2026)](https://space-kitty.com/dossiers/neurodegeneration)

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