title: Apolipoprotein E epsilon 4 allele and hippocampal volume in twins with normal cognition.
abstract: We examined the relation of APOE-epsilon 4, hippocampal volume, and cognitive performance in ten pairs of cognitively normal twins who had a mean age of 62.5 years (SD = 7.8). There were no significant differences in neuropsychological measures of the groups categorized by the presence of an epsilon 4 allele. However, the mean normalized right and left hippocampal volumes were smaller in the epsilon 4 groups compared to the group without epsilon 4. Combined with prior reports, these findings suggest that epsilon 4 is associated with differences in brain morphology that may be evident when no symptoms of dementia are present.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychiatry, Joseph and Kathleen Bryan Alzheimer's Disease Research Center, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27701, USA.
authors.forename: B L
authors.initials: BL
authors.lastname: Plassman
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Welsh-Bohmer
authors.forename: E D
authors.initials: ED
authors.lastname: Bigler
authors.forename: S C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: C V
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: M J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Helms
authors.forename: A M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Saunders
authors.forename: J C
authors.initials: JC
authors.lastname: Breitner
mesh_terms: D000483:Alleles; D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E / Q000235:genetics*; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D005838:Genotype; D006624:Hippocampus / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012016:Reference Values; D014427:Twins
chemical_list: D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D001057:Apolipoproteins E