Fig. 3

Cognitive and functional decline per year and CSF T-tau or P-tau in APOE ε4 carriers by AT(N) biomarker profiles. a More pronounced annual deterioration in MMSE score showed a linear association with higher T-tau at the start of ChEI therapy (time of AD diagnosis) (r_s = − 0.257, p = 0.014). b Decline per year in ADAS-cog score demonstrated a negative correlation with P-tau at baseline (r_s = − 0.242, p = 0.022). c A linear relationship between faster progression rate in IADL score/year and higher T-tau was also found (r_s = − 0.232, p = 0.028). These correlations were not significant among the APOE non-ε4 carriers. Abbreviations: A+, abnormal CSF Aβ₄₂; AD, Alzheimer’s disease; ADAS-cog, Alzheimer’s Disease Assessment Scale–cognitive subscale; APOE, apolipoprotein E; ChEI, cholinesterase inhibitor; CSF, cerebro-spinal fluid; IADL, Instrumental Activities of Daily Living Scale; MMSE, Mini-Mental State Examination; (N)–, normal CSF T-tau; (N)+, abnormal CSF T-tau; P-tau, phosphorylated tau; T–, normal CSF P-tau; T+, abnormal CSF P-tau; T-tau, total tau