Study finds gene that might predict Alzheimer's

http://www.scrippsnews.com/node/44547

Study finds gene that might predict Alzheimer's
Submitted by SHNS on Mon, 07/13/2009 - 15:03. By SARAH AVERY, Raleigh News and Observer health/fitness
In what could be a repeat of their blockbuster gene discovery of 1993, scientists at Duke University Medical Center have identified a second gene linked to an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease.

The gene not only appears to predict risk but also pegs the approximate age of onset for the degenerative brain disorder that afflicts 5.3 million Americans.

If the Duke team's findings are replicated by scientists elsewhere, the discovery could open an additional avenue of research for drug development.

"We now have the ability to look at both (genes)," said Dr. Allen Roses, director of Duke's Deane Drug Discovery Institute and lead author the study. Findings were presented Sunday at the annual meeting of the International Conference on Alzheimer's Disease in Vienna, Austria.

The announcement was met with great interest -- and caution -- by other scientists.

Since Roses and a team of gene hunters at Duke identified the first genetic link to Alzheimer's disease 16 years ago, many promising leads have fizzled under further analysis.

"I think this is really interesting, but it needs to be replicated," said Margaret Pericak-Vance, a genetics researcher at Miami University who was a key member of the group at Duke that identified the original gene, known as APOE.

The gene had been the only one associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease, the most common form, which hits people after the age of 65 and gradually robs them of memory, personality and function.

Roses agreed that additional confirmation is necessary. He said he welcomes other groups' attempts to verify the findings. In addition, he is working to set up a large, international study that will gauge how well the new gene predicts Alzheimer's disease in the general population, and test a potential drug for people whose genetic tests indicate they are at high risk of developing illness.

"We would love to be able to start a study by late 2010," Roses said.

The new genetic target is called TOMM40, and it has been a subject of interest for several years to geneticists exploring the hereditary nature of Alzheimer's disease.

Roses' group homed in on TOMM40, and identified how it and APOE appear to interact and predispose people to getting sick.