In nearly 1,200 adults, higher blood levels of a gut molecule called ImP tracked faster cognitive decline

What the research found

Study (mice plus human blood and cognitive follow-up). Barbara Bendlin, Federico Rey, and colleagues report in Nature Communications (2026; 17(1); doi 10.1038/s41467-026-74744-z; ScienceDaily 3 October 2026). Imidazole propionate (ImP) is made by some gut bacteria as they get energy from histidine. In mice, ImP that reached the brain increased abnormal beta amyloid and tau. In almost 1,200 people in the Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention and the Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, higher blood ImP lined up with markers of those abnormal proteins and with faster decline on repeated cognitive tests. About 43% of the people carried a genetic variation tied to higher ImP; the team suspects it may change how well the kidneys clear the molecule. Earlier work had linked ImP to type 2 diabetes and coronary artery disease. Bendlin said a generally better diet would probably help, and that the finding is not an instruction to stop eating eggs or red meat, because histidine is an essential amino acid found in many foods. A drug that lowers ImP is a hypothesis, not a product in this paper. UCLA and the University of Gothenburg contributed. Educational notes. This is not a dementia treatment.

Evidence level: Animal study. Results in animals or cells often don't carry over to people.

Read the original at University of Wisconsin-Madison / Nature Communications