Genetic evidence implicates the immune system and cholesterol metabolism in the aetiology of Alzheimer's disease.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Late Onset Alzheimer's disease (LOAD) is the leading cause of dementia. Recent large genome-wide association studies (GWAS) identified the first strongly supported LOAD susceptibility genes since the discovery of the involvement of APOE in the early 1990s. We have now exploited these GWAS datasets to uncover key LOAD pathophysiological processes.

Methodology

We applied a recently developed tool for mining GWAS data for biologically meaningful information to a LOAD GWAS dataset. The principal findings were then tested in an independent GWAS dataset.

Principal findings

We found a significant overrepresentation of association signals in pathways related to cholesterol metabolism and the immune response in both of the two largest genome-wide association studies

SUBMITTER: Jones L 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2981526 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature