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The E4 allele of the apolipoprotein E gene (APOE) is a well-established determinant of Alzheimer's disease but its relation to cognitive function is much less understood. We studied the age-specific effects of the APOE*E4 allele on cognitive function and cardiovascular risk factors in 2208 related individuals. APOE*E4 allele was significantly associated with reduced test scores for Adult Verbal Learning Test, particularly on the memory and learning sub domains, in persons older than 50 years of age. The effect of APOE*E4 was independent of the effect of APOE*E4 on vascular risk factors and most pronounced on learning ability. Our findings suggest that APOE*E4 has an effect on cognitive function predominantly in the elderly, independent of vascular risk factors.

Original publication

DOI

10.1016/j.neurobiolaging.2008.09.015

Type

Journal article

Journal

Neurobiology of aging

Publication Date

10/2010

Volume

31

Pages

1831 - 1833

Addresses

Department of Epidemiology, Erasmus University Medical Center Rotterdam, The Netherlands.

Keywords

Humans, Cardiovascular Diseases, Cholesterol, Triglycerides, Lipoproteins, HDL, Risk Factors, Cognition, Learning, Memory, Age Factors, Aging, Adult, Middle Aged, Apolipoprotein E4