Apolipoprotein E polymorphism and susceptibility to early- and late-onset sporadic Alzheimer's disease in Hokkaido, the northern part of Japan.
Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) phenotypes and corresponding allele frequencies were examined in 72 patients (50-90 years of age) with sporadic Alzheimer's disease (AD) and 83 elderly controls (61-96 years of age) in Hokkaido, the northern part of Japan. The frequency of the ApoE-epsilon 4 allele was significantly higher in the patients with either early-onset (age < 65 years) AD (0.40) or late-onset AD (0.26) than in controls (0.07), while the patients developing AD before 50 years of age had no epsilon 4 allele. The mean age at onset of AD was significantly lower in the ApoE-epsilon 4 homozygotes compared to that in the patients with either one or no epsilon 4 allele (60.2, 71.3 and 70.3 years, respectively). Our results indicate that the ApoE-epsilon 4 allele is associated with susceptibility to Japanese sporadic AD developing after 50 years of age and homozygosity for the epsilon 4 allele shifts the onset to earlier age.
Nunomura
A
A
Department of Psychiatry and Neurology, Asahikawa Medical College, Japan. nuno@asahikawa-med.ac.jp
Chiba
S
S
Eto
M
M
Saito
M
M
Makino
I
I
Miyagishi
T
T
D017668:Age of Onset; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000483:Alleles; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D007564:Japan; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic
D001057:Apolipoproteins E