Cited by 369Alzheimer's disease research and treatmentsDementia and Cognitive Impairment ResearchAmyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Research

APOE4 homozygosity represents a distinct genetic form of Alzheimer’s disease

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Fortea, Juan, Pegueroles, Jordi, Alcolea, Daniel, Belbin, Olivia, Dols-Icardo, Oriol, Vaqué-Alcázar, Lídia, Videla, Laura, Gispert, Juan Domingo +6 more·2024·Nature Medicine

Abstract

This study aimed to evaluate the impact of APOE4 homozygosity on Alzheimer's disease (AD) by examining its clinical, pathological and biomarker changes to see whether APOE4 homozygotes constitute a distinct, genetically determined form of AD. Data from the National Alzheimer's Coordinating Center and five large cohorts with AD biomarkers were analyzed. The analysis included 3,297 individuals for the pathological study and 10,039 for the clinical study. Findings revealed that almost all APOE4 homozygotes exhibited AD pathology and had significantly higher levels of AD biomarkers from age 55 compared to APOE3 homozygotes. By age 65, nearly all had abnormal amyloid levels in cerebrospinal fluid, and 75% had positive amyloid scans, with the prevalence of these markers increasing with age, indicating near-full penetrance of AD biology in APOE4 homozygotes. The age of symptom onset was earlier in APOE4 homozygotes at 65.1, with a narrower 95% prediction interval than APOE3 homozygotes. The predictability of symptom onset and the sequence of biomarker changes in APOE4 homozygotes mirrored those in autosomal dominant AD and Down syndrome. However, in the dementia stage, there were no differences in amyloid or tau positron emission tomography across haplotypes, despite earlier clinical and biomarker changes. The study concludes that APOE4 homozygotes represent a genetic form of AD, suggesting the need for individualized prevention strategies, clinical trials and treatments.

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  1. [29]Johnson SC The Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention: a review of findings and current directions. Alzheimer’s Dement.: Diagnosis, Assess. Dis. Monit. 10, 130– 142 (2018). PMC5755749 29322089

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Authors
Fortea, J., Pegueroles, J., Alcolea, D., Belbin, O., Dols-Icardo, O., Vaqué-Alcázar, L., Videla, L., Gispert, J. D., Suárez-Calvet, M., Johnson, S. C., Sperling, R., Bejanin, A., Lleó, A., & Montal, V.
Affiliations
  • Hospital de Sant Pau (ES)
  • Universitat Pompeu Fabra (ES)
  • University of Wisconsin–Madison (US)
  • Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
  • Barcelona Supercomputing Center (ES)
Corresponding author
  • Fortea, Juan
  • Montal, Víctor
Venue
Nature Medicine
Published
2024-05
Volume
30
Issue
5
Pages
1284-1291
ISSN
  • 1078-8956 (ISSN-L)
  • 1546-170X
OpenAlex
W4396673676
Cited by
369
References
32
Citations by year
2026: 110 · 2025: 191 · 2024: 67 · 2023: 1
FWCI
104.73
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Nature Medicine (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
Funders
  • U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (U54HD090256, P01AG036694 and P50AG005134, R21 AG056974, R01 AG027161, S10 OD025245, UF1AG051216, P50 AG033514, and P30 AG062715, UL1 TR002373, P30 AG062715, R01 AG061566, R01 AG054059, R01 AG037639)
  • Alzheimer's Association (AARG-22-923680)
  • European Commission (948677 and 847648, H2020-SC1-BHC-2018-2020, Grant 2021)
  • Generalitat de Catalunya (SLT006/17/00119, SLT002/16/00408)
  • Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (PI22/00307, PI20/01330, PI20/01473, PI18/00435, PI22/00456)
  • Fundación Bancaria Caixa d'Estalvis i Pensions de Barcelona (LCF/PR/GN17/50300004)
  • National Institutes of Health (5u01ag024904-10, 1s10od025245-01, UL1TR002373)
  • National Institute on Aging (U01-AG-024904, R01AG081394, UF1AG051216, RF1AG056850, R61AG066543, R01AG037639, R01AG063689, P50AG033514, RF1AG061566, P50AG005134, R21AG056974, R01AG021155, R01AG027161, U24AG057437, P01AG036694, R01AG054059, P30AG062715, U24AG072122)
  • National Center for Advancing Translational Sciences
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (U54HD090256)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Physiology › Alzheimer's disease research and treatments
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Neurology › Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis Research
Keywords
Alzheimer's disease, APOE3, amyloid PET, cerebrospinal fluid amyloid, tau PET, symptom onset age, disease progression, autosomal dominant Alzheimer's disease, Down syndrome, penetrance, dementia stages
MeSH terms
Aged, Aged, 80 and over, Alzheimer Disease, Amyloid, Apolipoproteins E, Female, Homozygote, Humans, Male, Middle Aged, Cohort Studies, Biomarkers, Amyloid beta-Peptides, tau Proteins, Age of Onset, Positron-Emission Tomography, Apolipoprotein E3, Apolipoprotein E4

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