Abigail Dove

I am a post-doctoral researcher in neuroepidemiology at the Aging Research Center (ARC) and also hold an affiliation with the University of Pennsylvania's Department of Neurology. My research focuses on cardiovascular and metabolic risk factors for brain aging and dementia, their underlying mechanisms, and the identification of modifiable lifestyle factors that can mitigate the adverse impact of cardiometabolic disease on brain and cognitive health. 

PhD thesis: "Cardiometabolic disease and dementia risk: identifying compensatory factors"

Latest study: 

Dove A, Wang J, Yang R, Sakakibara S, Arvanitakis Z, Schneider ALC, Gottesman RF, Xu W. Metabolic syndrome is associated with accelerated brain aging. Alzheimer's and Dementia 2026; 22(7): e71563. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.71563

*See accompanying popular science article in The Conversation

Selected publications: 

Miao Y, Wang J, Li X, Guo J, Ekblom M, Sindi S, Zhang Q, Dove A. Poor sleep health is associated with older brain age: the role of systemic inflammation. The Lancet eBioMedicine 2025; 120: 105941. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ebiom.2025.105941 [additional converage in The Conversation]

Xu L, Wang S, Maimaitiyiming M, Yang W, Sakakibara S, Qi X, Wang Y, Dove A. Cardiorespiratory fitness, multimorbidity risk, and 15-year trajectories in chronic disease accumulation: a prospective longitudinal study. JACC Advances 2025; 4:12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jacadv.2025.102198

Dove A, Wang J, Huang H, Dunk MM, Sakakibara S, Guitart-Masip M, Papenberg G, Xu W. Diabetes, prediabetes, and brain aging: the role of healthy lifestyle. Diabetes Care 2024; 47(10): 1794-1802. https://doi.org/10.2337/dc24-0860 

Dove A, Guo J, Marseglia A, Fastbom J, Vetrano DL, Fratiglioni L, Pedersen N, Xu W. Cardiometabolic multimorbidity and incident dementia: the Swedish twin registry. European Heart Journal 2023; 44(7): 573-582. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurheartj/ehac744 

Dove A, Shang Y, Grande G, Laukka EJ, Fratiglioni L, Xu W, Marseglia A. The impact of diabetes on cognitive impairment and its progression to dementia. Alzheimer's and Dementia 2021; 17(11): 1769-1778. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.12482

Dove A, Dunk MM, Wang J, Guo J, Whitmer RA, Xu W. Anti-inflammatory diet and dementia in older adults with cardiometabolic diseases. JAMA Network Open 2024; 7(8): e2427125. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2024.27125

Dove A, Marseglia A, Shang Y, Vetrano DL, Grande G, Laukka EJ, Fratiglioni L, Xu W. Cardiometabolic multimorbidity accelerates cognitive decline and dementia progression. Alzheimer's and Dementia 2022; 19(3): 821-830. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.12708 

Dove A, Yang W, Dekhtyar S, Guo J, Wang J, Marseglia A, Vetrano DL, Whitmer RA, Xu W. High cognitive reserve attenuates the risk of dementia associated with cardiometabolic disease. Alzheimer's Research and Therapy 2024; 16:161. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13195-024-01528-2 

Dove A, Guo J, Wang J, Vetrano DL, Sakakibara S, Laukka EJ, Bennett DA, Xu W. Cardiometabolic disease, cognitive decline, and brain structure in middle and older age. Alzheimer's and Dementia: Diagnosis, Assessment, and Disease Monitoring 2024; 16: e12566. https://doi.org/10.1002/dad2.12566 

Dove A, Xu W. Cardiometabolic multimorbidity and cognitive decline. The Lancet Healthy Longevity 2023; 4(6): E241-E242 https://doi.org/10.1016/S2666-7568(23)00053-3

Dove A, Guo J, Calderón-Larrañaga A, Vetrano DL, Fratiglioni L, Xu W. Association of social isolation with reduced mental well-being in Swedish older adults during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic: the role of cardiometabolic diseases. Aging 2022; 14(6): 2462-2474. https://doi.org/10.18632/aging.203956