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Background: Monocyte Chemoattractant Protein-1 (MCP-1), a glial-derived chemokine, mediates neuroinflammation and may regulate memory outcomes among older adults. We aimed to explore the associations of plasma MCP-1 levels (alone and in combination with β-amyloid deposition—Aβ42/40) with overall and domain-specific cognitive evolution among older adults. Methods: Secondary analyses including 1097 subjects (mean age = 75.3 years ± 4.4; 63.8% women) from the Multidomain Alzheimer Preventive Trial (MAPT). MCP-1 (higher is worse) and Aβ42/40 (lower is worse) were measured in plasma collected at year 1. MCP-1 in continuous and as a dichotomy (values in the highest quartile (MCP-1+)) were used, as well as a dichotomy of Aβ42/40. Outcomes were measured annually over 4 years and included the following: cognitive composite z-score (CCS), the Mini-Mental State Examination (MMSE), and Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR) sum of boxes (overall cognitive function); composite executive function z-score, composite attention z-score, Free and Cued Selective Reminding Test (FCSRT - memory). Results: Plasma MCP-1 as a continuous variable was associated with the worsening of episodic memory over 4 years of follow-up, specifically in measures of free and cued delayed recall. MCP-1+ was associated with worse evolution in the CCS (4-year between-group difference: β = −0.14, 95%CI = −0.26, −0.02) and the CDR sum of boxes (2-year: β = 0.19, 95%CI = 0.06, 0.32). In domain-specific analyses, MCP-1+ was associated with declines in the FCSRT delayed recall sub-domains. In the presence of low Aβ42/40, MCP-1+ was not associated with greater declines in cognitive functions. The interaction with continuous biomarker values Aβ42/40× MCP-1 × time was significant in models with CDR sum of boxes and FCSRT DTR as dependent variables. Conclusions: Baseline plasma MCP-1 levels were associated with longitudinal declines in overall cognitive and episodic memory performance in older adults over a 4-year follow-up. How plasma MCP-1 interacts with Aβ42/40 to determine cognitive decline at different stages of cognitive decline/dementia should be clarified by further research. The MCP-1 association on cognitive decline was strongest in those with amyloid plaques, as measured by blood plasma Aβ42/40. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

According to the dictionary of the Royal Academy of the Spanish Language, numismatics is the discipline that studies coins and medals, mainly ancient ones. In other places, this definition includes the study and collection of paper money or banknotes. The information we can obtain from coins with a minimum study of the aspects that appear on them is surprising. In relation to vision and ophthalmology, they show us important figures in the field, ocular symbology, they tell us about mythology and religion and curious stories that we would hardly have known without looking at the coins. Finally, we will talk about an important 19th century Valencian ophthalmologist, Rafael Cervera y Royo, and the collection of ancient coins that bears his name. This work is not intended to be an exhaustive description of all the coins and medals that speak of vision, but rather a sample of the valuable information that numismatics contributes to our speciality and to stimulate the public's curiosity about this fascinating science. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]