To be or not to be: leptin and adiponectin as both predictors and therapeutic targets of Alzheimer's disease

Leptin has neuroprotective properties in hippocampal AD models, however little is known about the possible neuroprotective effects of adiponectin in the brain. The first aim is to shed light onto the role of adiponectin in the hippocampus and investigate whether concomitant administration of leptin and adiponectin has a synergistic neuroprotective effect in established models of AD. The second aim is to determine if plasma levels of leptin and adiponectin can be used to build a model which assesses the probability of developing AD in a large human cohort. The approach is interdisciplinary, as it will involve cellular and molecular investigations using rodent models, and bioinformatics and machine learning using the GoFUSION bioresource. If successful, this study will deliver two major outcomes: it will establish whether leptin and adiponectin are suitable therapeutic targets in AD and whether they can act as biomarkers of AD before clinical onset of symptoms.