THE APOLIPOPROTEIN-E GENE AND THE PHENOTY PE OF ALZHEIMERS-DISEASE

The relevance of the apolipoprotein E epsilon 4 allele as risk factor for Alzheimer's disease is independent of age. This was demonstrated i n 126 patients and 72 healthy controls. The age in both groups varied between 44 and 95 years. An earlier onset of symptoms among carriers o f the epsilon 4 allele, how ever, was observed only in the oldest pati ents. This may reflect a selection bias which is due to the associatio n of the epsilon 4 allele with two competitive age dependent risks: fo r Alzheimer's disease and for coronary heart disease. In a subsample o f 64 patients who had participated in a longitudinal study no relation ship was found between the apolipoprotein E genotype and clinical symp toms or symptom progression.