Lab - APOE Alzheimer's Risk

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia in the elderly and currently affects more than 5 million Americans. It is a progressive neurodegenerative disorder with brain findings of amyloid plaques containing β-amyloid and neurofibrillary tangles. AD is a complex and heterogeneous disease, influenced by many genetic and environmental factors. The risk for development of late-onset AD is increased approximately two- to threefold for individuals with one copy of the APOE4 variant and by approximately 10- to 15-fold for individuals with two copies of the variant (E4/E4 genotype). The APOE2 variant has some protective effect against the development of late-onset AD. The lifetime risk for late-onset Alzheimer's disease is approximately 10% to 12% in the general population, though it is higher in women than men and doubles when there is a first-degree relative with this disorder. The lifetime risk is approximately 9% for individuals negative for APOE4, and for individuals wi