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APOE Genotype and Entorhinal Cortex Volume in Non-Demented Community-Dwelling Adults in Midlife and Early Old Age

Article type: Research Article

Authors: Bunce, Davida; * | Anstey, Kaarin J.b | Cherbuin, Nicolasb | Gautam, Praptib | Sachdev, Perminderc; d | Easteal, Simone

Affiliations: [a] Centre for Cognition and Neuroimaging, Department of Psychology, Brunel University, London, UK | [b] Centre for Research on Ageing, Health and Wellbeing, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia | [c] Neuropsychiatric Institute, Prince of Wales Hospital, Randwick, NSW, Australia | [d] School of Psychiatry, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia | [e] John Curtin School of Medical Research, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia

Correspondence: [*] Correspondence to: David Bunce, Centre for Cognition and Neuroimaging, Department of Psychology, Brunel University, London, UK. Tel.: +44 1895 267242; Fax: +44 1895 237573; E-mail: david.bunce@brunel.ac.uk.

Keywords: Age, Alzheimer's disease, APOE, entorhinal cortex

DOI: 10.3233/JAD-2012-112126

Journal: Journal of Alzheimer's Disease, vol. 30, no. 4, pp. 935-942, 2012

Accepted 15 March 2012
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Published: 18 June 2012
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Abstract

The apolipoprotein E (APOE) ε4 allele is a risk factor for the neuropathological decline accompanying Alzheimer's disease (AD) while, conversely, the ε2 allele offers protection. One of the brain structures exhibiting the earliest changes associated with the disease is the entorhinal cortex. We therefore investigated the volumes of the entorhinal cortex and other structures in the medial temporal lobe including the parahippocampal gyrus, temporal pole, and inferior, middle, and superior temporal cortices, in relation to APOE genotype. Our main objectives were to determine if (a) volumes systematically varied according to allele in a stepwise fashion, ε2 > ε3 > ε4, and (b) associations varied according to age. We investigate this association in 627 non-demented community-dwelling adults in middle age (44 to 48 years; n = 314) and older age (64 to 68 years; n = 313) who underwent structural MRI scans. We found no evidence of APOE-related variation in brain volumes in the age groups examined. We conclude that if a ε2 > ε3 > ε4 pattern in brain volumes does emerge in non-demented adults living in the community in old age, it is not until after the age of 68 years.

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