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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Aging Neurosci.
Sec. Parkinson’s Disease and Aging-related Movement Disorders
Volume 16 - 2024 | doi: 10.3389/fnagi.2024.1434943
This article is part of the Research Topic Cognition in Parkinson's disease View all 4 articles

Association of Plasma Homocysteine with Cognitive Impairment in Patients with Parkinson's Disease

Provisionally accepted
Yan Xiao Yan Xiao 1,2Lin-Hua Gan Lin-Hua Gan 1,2Xiaoniu Liang Xiaoniu Liang 1,2Zhiheng Xu Zhiheng Xu 1,2Tian-Yu Hu Tian-Yu Hu 1,2Xiu-Yuan Li Xiu-Yuan Li 1,2Yilin Tang Yilin Tang 1,2*Jian Wang Jian Wang 1,2*Yiqi Liu Yiqi Liu 1,2*
  • 1 Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
  • 2 National Clinical Research Center for Aging and Medicine, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, Shanghai Municipality, China

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

    Background: Elevated plasma homocysteine (Hcy) has been reported as a risk factor for cognitive impairment in the general population. However, there are conflicting results regarding the relationship between Hcy and cognitive impairment across various cognitive domains in Parkinson’s disease (PD). Objective: This study aims to explore the association between plasma Hcy levels, cognitive impairment, and dysfunction in various cognitive domains among PD patients with and without mild cognitive impairment (MCI). Methods: A total of 101 PD patients underwent plasma Hcy measurement, comprising 50 PD-MCI patients and 51 patients with normal cognition (PD-NC). A battery of neuropsychological tests was administered to assess different cognitive domains. Adjusted generalized linear models were used to assess the correlations between Hcy levels and cognitive functions. Results: As anticipated, PD-MCI patients demonstrated a significant decline in cognitive function across all five cognitive domains (memory, executive function, attention/working memory, language, and visuospatial function). Elevated plasma Hcy levels (≥ 10 μmol/L) were associated with a higher odds of PD-MCI, even within the normal range of Hcy levels (< 15 μmol/L). After adjusting for confounding factors, a negative correlation was observed between plasma Hcy levels and the performance on specific cognitive tests evaluating executive functions in PD, such as the Stroop Color-Word Test-C (β = -1.123, 95% CI = -1.845 ~ -0.401, p = 0.0023). Conclusion: This study underscores a significant link between plasma Hcy levels and PD-MCI, particularly concerning executive dysfunction, even within the normal range of Hcy levels (< 15 μmol/L).

    Keywords: Parkinson's disease, Homocysteine, Mild Cognitive Impairment, Executive Function, correlations

    Received: 05 Jun 2024; Accepted: 22 Nov 2024.

    Copyright: © 2024 Xiao, Gan, Liang, Xu, Hu, Li, Tang, Wang and Liu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

    * Correspondence:
    Yilin Tang, Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
    Jian Wang, Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China
    Yiqi Liu, Department of Neurology, Huashan Hospital, Fudan University, Shanghai, China

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