Swedish Research Council, Swedish State Support for Clinical Research, Alzheimer's Association, Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, Torsten Söderberg Foundation, Alzheimer Foundation (Sweden), European Research Council, and Biomedical Research Forum.

Objectives To assess to what extent educational differences in total life expectancy (TLE) and disability-free life expectancy (DFLE) could be reduced by improving fruit and vegetable consumption in ten European countries. Methods Data from national census or registries with mortality follow-up, EU-SILC, and ESS were used in two scenarios to calculate the impact: the upward levelling scenario (exposure in low educated equals exposure in high educated) and the elimination scenario (no exposure in both groups). Results are estimated for men and women between ages 35 and 79 years. Results Varying by country, upward levelling reduced inequalities in DFLE by 0.1-1.1 years (1-10%) in males, and by 0.0-1.3 years (0-18%) in females. Eliminating exposure reduced inequalities in DFLE between 0.6 and 1.7 years for males (6-15%), and between 0.1 years and 1.8 years for females (3-20%). Conclusions Upward levelling of fruit and vegetable consumption would have a small, positive effect on both TLE and DFLE, and could potentially reduce inequalities in TLE and DFLE.

In the 12 years since the publication of the first Consensus Paper of the WFSBP on biomarkers of neurodegenerative dementias, enormous advancement has taken place in the field, and the Task Force takes now the opportunity to extend and update the original paper. New concepts of Alzheimer's disease (AD) and the conceptual interactions between AD and dementia due to AD were developed, resulting in two sets for diagnostic/research criteria. Procedures for pre-analytical sample handling, biobanking, analyses and post-analytical interpretation of the results were intensively studied and optimised. A global quality control project was introduced to evaluate and monitor the inter-centre variability in measurements with the goal of harmonisation of results. Contexts of use and how to approach candidate biomarkers in biological specimens other than cerebrospinal fluid (CSF), e.g. blood, were precisely defined. Important development was achieved in neuroimaging techniques, including studies comparing amyloid-b positron emission tomography results to fluid-based modalities. Similarly, development in research laboratory technologies, such as ultra-sensitive methods, raises our hopes to further improve analytical and diagnostic accuracy of classic and novel candidate biomarkers. Synergistically, advancement in clinical trials of anti-dementia therapies energises and motivates the efforts to find and optimise the most reliable early diagnostic modalities. Finally, the first studies were published addressing the potential of cost-effectiveness of the biomarkers-based diagnosis of neurodegenerative disorders. ARTICLE HISTORY

Background. Patients afflicted with Alzheimer's disease (AD) exhibit a decrease in the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) concentration of the 42 amino acid form of β-amyloid (Aβ 42). However, a high discrepancy between different centers in measured Aβ 42 levels reduces the utility of this biomarker as a diagnostic tool and in monitoring the effect of disease modifying drugs. Preanalytical and analytical confounding factors were examined with respect to their effect on the measured Aβ 42 level. Methods. Aliquots of CSF samples were either treated differently prior to Aβ 42 measurement or analyzed using different commercially available xMAP or ELISA assays. Results. Confounding factors affecting CSF Aβ 42 levels were storage in different types of test tubes, dilution with detergent-containing buffer, plasma contamination, heat treatment, and the origin of the immunoassays used for quantification. Conclusion. In order to conduct multicenter studies, a standardized protocol to minimize preanalytical and analytical confounding factors is warranted.