title: Alzheimer's disease: genetic polymorphisms and rate of decline.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the influence of established genetic risk factors for Alzheimer's disease on the speed of disease progression.
  
  
  METHODS
  Polymorphisms (in ACE, ApoE, BIN1, CLU, CR1, CST3, EXOC3L2, GWA14q32.13, IL8, LDLR, PICALM, TNK1) of 40 Alzheimer's disease patients from a longitudinal study were analyzed. A standardized loss of Mini-Mental State Examination points was used as the progression parameter.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Polymorphisms in CST3 and EXOC3L2 as well as the absence of APOE4 were associated with more aggressive disease courses. A trend was observed for BIN1.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  In addition to being a risk factor for disease development, some of the polymorphisms investigated here are associated with higher rates of decline and disease progression and thus might act as prognostic disease markers. This effect needs to be considered in future treatment strategies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurology, Georg August University Hospital, Robert-Koch-Strasse 40, Goettingen, Germany. cschmid2@gwdg.de
authors.forename: Christian
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Martin
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Wolff
authors.forename: Nicolas
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: von Ahsen
authors.forename: Inga
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zerr
mesh_terms: D017668:Age of Onset; D000368:Aged; D000544:Alzheimer Disease / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics / Q000523:psychology; D053327:Apolipoprotein E4 / Q000235:genetics; D055316:Cystatin C / Q000235:genetics; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D055106:Genome-Wide Association Study; D006801:Humans; D007361:Intelligence Tests; D008297:Male; D034041:Monomeric Clathrin Assembly Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D020641:Polymorphism, Single Nucleotide
chemical_list: D053327:Apolipoprotein E4; D055316:Cystatin C; D034041:Monomeric Clathrin Assembly Proteins