“ApoE Late-Onset Alzheimer Risk Detection: Who Should Do It?”

Alzheimer’s disease can be divided into “early-onset” with onset before the age of 65 and “late-onset” with onset after 65. Late-onset patients account for about 80% of all Alzheimer’s patients. “Thor Thor” Chris Hemsworth made the decision to take a temporary hiatus because he accidentally found out that he has a genetic predisposition to Alzheimer’s disease during a health checkup. What is ApoE Late Onset Alzheimer Risk Detection? Who should do it?

Dementia has always been considered an incurable disease, among which Alzheimer’s disease accounts for more than 60% of dementia, and its incidence is increasing year by year. Compared with the gradual decline in the death rate of other major diseases, the death rate of this disease has increased rapidly. For Taiwan, which has entered a “super-aged society”, the problem is even more urgent.

Genes and the environment key to Alzheimer’s

Alzheimer’s disease is a complex neurodegenerative disease characterized by “amyloid aging plaques” and “the formation and accumulation of neurofibrillary tangles”, which eventually lead to nerve cell apoptosis over time, and its symptoms range from forgetfulness, Cognitive dysfunction such as memory loss or concentration loss, so “Alzheimer’s disease” is commonly known as “The Long Goodbye”. Patients often suddenly do not recognize the people around them at all, and enter another world for a few minutes before returning to continue eating. As if nothing had happened, this state will get worse and worse, and it will last for several years, like a long goodbye, until finally it is completely goodbye.

This disease is highly correlated with genes and the environment. APOE located on the 19th chromosome is regarded as the most influential gene. Its main function is combined with VLDL and HDL to regulate the fat content in the blood, good fat metabolism and clearing the brain. Disease-causing abnormal protein deposition is closely related, so it is also related to the risk of cardiovascular disease and stroke.

APOE risk detection ahead of deployment for late-onset Alzheimer’s disease

ApoE can be divided into ε2, ε3, ε4 according to the variation point of specific SNP in DNA sequence. One allele is inherited from each parent, so allele typing can be divided into six types, the incidence of which is ε3/ε3 is the most common, accounting for about 55.8% of the population, followed by ε3/ε4 (20.0%), Its ε2/ε3 (17.1%), ε2/ε4 (4.1%) and ε4/ε4 (2.3%), among which ε2/ε2 (0.7%) is the most rare.

A person with ε2 is like getting a good card, and it may resist the formation of Alzheimer’s disease! A person with ε4 is like getting a bad card, which will make the age of the disease earlier, and every 5 years after the age of 65 , the risk is doubled, and those with one ε4 and two ε4/ε4 will increase the probability of getting the disease by 3 to 5 times and 10 to 15 times. The probability of Alzheimer’s disease is higher, so the shadow is gone.

Prevention is better than cure, it is recommended that high-risk groups can do risk detection

The 2022 study tracked 29,072 middle-aged and elderly people over the age of 60, of which 20.43% of the subjects carried the ε4 gene. After 10 years of follow-up, it was found that if the ε4 carriers had a good lifestyle, their memory The descendants fared better than those who did not carry the ε4 gene but had a poor lifestyle. Six healthy lifestyles mentioned in the study can slow down memory loss, including healthy diet, regular exercise, active maintenance of social relationships, liking to write or read, not smoking, not drinking.

Therefore, even those who are at high risk of ε4 can only show that they have Alzheimer’s disease constitution, but it does not mean that they will definitely develop Alzheimer’s disease. A continuous healthy lifestyle can also reduce the risk of memory loss. By controlling cholesterol, three highs and adjusting Lifestyle achieves the effect of early prevention.

It is recommended that people who are obese, three-high patients, have had head trauma, long-term smoking, have a history of depression, or are over 65 years old, carry out “ApoE late-onset Alzheimer’s disease risk detection” for advanced deployment and early prevention.

Editor / Lai Yiling, photo / Sun Peiqun

further reading
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