"People are often worried they will inevitably contract Alzheimer's disease if a parent did. But increasingly, scientists have found this is not necessarily the case. Some People Have a "Risk Allele" Processes in our bodies are regulated by genes, but not everyone has exactly the same version of each gene. These different versions are called alleles. Different alleles carry different risks for physical conditions in the body, including Alzheimer's disease and other dementias."
"One of the most strongly replicated findings for genetic risk of Alzheimer's disease in late life involves the APOE gene, and the ε4 allele. You have two alleles for every gene. For the APOE gene, you may have the ε2, ε3, or ε4 alleles. The ε2 allele appears to be protective; people who carry it are less likely to develop Alzheimer's disease. Having one allele with ε4 increases your risk, however, and having both alleles with ε4 raises it even more."
Alzheimer's disease receives the most research attention among dementias. Genetics typically plays only a small role in late-life Alzheimer's risk. Gene variants, or alleles, influence bodily processes and carry different risks for conditions including Alzheimer's. The APOE gene's ε4 allele is a strongly replicated late-life risk factor; ε2 appears protective. People have two alleles per gene; carrying one ε4 increases risk and carrying two ε4 alleles raises it further. Even double ε4 carriers develop Alzheimer's only about 40% to 60% of the time by age 80. Allele distributions and actual rates vary by age, sex, and ancestry.
Read at Psychology Today
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