Metabolites and Cognitive Decline in a Puerto Rican Cohort.

Abstract

Recent studies have identified plasma metabolites associated with cognitive decline and Alzheimer's disease; however, little research on this topic has been conducted in Latinos, especially Puerto Ricans. This study aims to add to the growing body of metabolomics research in Latinos to better understand and improve the health of this population. We assessed the association between plasma metabolites and global cognition over 12 years of follow-up in 736 participants of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (BPRHS). Metabolites were measured with untargeted metabolomic profiling (Metabolon, Inc) at baseline. We used covariable adjusted linear mixed models (LMM) with a metabolite * time interaction term to identify metabolites (of 621 measured) associated with ∼12 years cognitive trajectory. We observed strong inverse associations between medium-chain fatty acids, caproic acid, and the dicarboxylic acids, azelaic and sebacic acid, and global cognition. N-formylphenylalanine, a tyrosine pathway metabolite, was associated with improvement in cognitive trajectory. The metabolites identified in this study are generally consistent with prior literature and highlight a role medium chain fatty acid and tyrosine metabolism in cognitive decline.