Sex hormone binding globulin and incident Alzheimer’s disease in elderly men and women

Muller, Majon; Schupf, Nicole; Manly, Jennifer J.; Mayeux, Richard; Luchsinger, José A.

doi:10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2008.10.001

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Volume 31, Issue 10 , Pages 1758-1765, October 2010

Sex hormone binding globulin and incident Alzheimer’s disease in elderly men and women

Majon Muller
- Department of Geriatric Medicine, University Medical Center, Utrecht, The Netherlands
- Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
Nicole Schupf
- Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Taub Institute for Research of Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Epidemiology, Joseph P. Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Laboratory of Epidemiology, NYS Institute for Basic Research in Developmental Disabilities, Staten Island, NY, United States
Jennifer J. Manly
- Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Taub Institute for Research of Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, United States
Richard Mayeux
- Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Taub Institute for Research of Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Epidemiology, Joseph P. Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Neurology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY, United States
José A. Luchsinger
- Gertrude H. Sergievsky Center, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Taub Institute for Research of Alzheimer’s Disease and the Aging Brain, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Department of Epidemiology, Joseph P. Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, New York, NY, United States
- Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, 630 West 168th St., PH19, New York, NY 10032, United States
- Corresponding author at: Division of General Medicine, Department of Medicine, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, 630 West 168th St., PH19, New York, NY 10032, United States. Tel.: +1 212 3054730; fax: +1 212 3059349.

Received 28 January 2008; received in revised form 23 September 2008; accepted 2 October 2008. published online 20 November 2008.

Abstract

It has been suggested that low levels of estradiol and testosterone increase dementia risk. However, results of the existing observational studies examining associations of endogenous sex hormones with cognition and dementia are conflicting. A possible explanation for these inconsistent findings could be the involvement of sex hormone-binding globulin (SHBG) in regulating sex hormone levels. In the present study, we examined whether SHBG levels were associated with development of AD and overall dementia in a cohort of elderly men and women free of dementia at baseline. We observed that in both men and women higher levels of SHBG were associated with an increased risk for AD and overall dementia. These results were independent of vascular risk factors and bioactive hormone levels. Whether SHBG is causally related to dementia or whether it is a surrogate marker for rate of biological aging and increased risk or for preclinical stage of dementia has to be elucidated.

Keywords: SHBG, Estradiol, Testosterone, Alzheimer’s disease, Dementia