Human study · Supplements / medicine · 16 Oct 2026
In one man treated in his fifties, brain regions cleared of amyloid held little tau while neighboring regions did not
Source: Penn Medicine / JAMA
What the research found
Case report (one brain). Christopher A. Brown, David Wolk, Edward B. Lee, and colleagues at Penn Medicine report in JAMA (DOI 10.1001/jama.2026.13058). The man was diagnosed in his fifties with mild cognitive impairment from Alzheimer disease, then received 30 doses of aducanumab over four and a half years. He died about four years after the last dose. On the raised ridges of the cortex, amyloid plaques were largely gone and tau tangles were scarce. In the neighboring grooves, amyloid remained and tau, inflammation, and tissue loss were much heavier. Scans during life had already shown uneven clearance. Aducanumab is no longer sold. Newer amyloid antibodies use a related approach, but this single case cannot prove that clearance caused the tau difference or name a dose that protects people. Not medical advice.
Evidence level: Human study. A study in people, but an association isn't proof of cause.
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