Viktor H. Ahlqvist

Children with autism are transitioning into adulthood. Emerging evidence suggests an increased risk of early-onset dementia among individuals with autism and a higher risk of any dementia among their family members. However, existing studies have primarily treated autism and dementia as binary variables, overlooking the fact that autism represents a continuum of symptoms, while dementia likely involves a prolonged neurodegenerative process leading to its onset.The overarching aim of this project is to utilize pre-existing cohorts with individual-level data on genotyping and various neurodegeneration markers to examine the relationship between genetic liability for autism and neurodegeneration. We will compare: 1) the risk of cognitive decline and its progression to dementia

2) measures of brain aging

and 3) the burden of known risk factors and antecedent conditions for dementia between individuals with high versus low genetic liability for autism. Additionally, we will conduct -omics analyses to investigate biological pathways for the link between autism and dementia.The large sample size, unique data access, cutting-edge analytical approaches, cross-country comparisons, and an experienced and dedicated research team underscore the scientific novelty and significance of this project. The findings from this research will have important implications for developing targeted interventions aimed at preventing or delaying the onset of dementia in the autistic population.