Increased apolipoprotein E epsilon 4 in epilepsy with senile plaques.
Inheritance of the apolipoprotein E (ApoE) epsilon 4 allele is a risk factor for Alzheimer's disease (AD) and is associated with increased deposition of beta-amyloid (A beta) in AD, Down's syndrome, and normal aging. A beta deposition in the form of senile plaques (SPs) has recently been described in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). We studied the relationship between ApoE epsilon 4 genotype and the deposition of A beta in temporal lobe tissue from patients who underwent temporal lobectomy for intractable epilepsy. TLE patients with SPs had a 70% ApoE epsilon 4 carrier frequency compared with a 27% carrier frequency among age-matched TLE controls without SPs. Our data suggest that the association between ApoE epsilon 4 and intracerebral A beta accumulation is not unique to the elderly or to those with dementia, and may be a feature of conditions in which there is both an ApoE epsilon 4 allele and over-production of A beta precursor protein, and, presumably, A beta.
Gouras
G K
GK
Department of Neurology and Neuroscience, Cornell University Medical College, New York, NY 10021, USA. gkgouras@mail.med.cornell.edu
Relkin
N R
NR
Sweeney
D
D
Munoz
D G
DG
Mackenzie
I R
IR
Gandy
S
S
D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides / Q000032:analysis; D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics*; D001706:Biopsy; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D016009:Chi-Square Distribution; D004833:Epilepsy, Temporal Lobe / Q000235:genetics* / Q000473:pathology / Q000601:surgery; D005838:Genotype; D006801:Humans; D008875:Middle Aged; D013702:Temporal Lobe / Q000737:chemistry / Q000473:pathology
D016229:Amyloid beta-Peptides; D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E