How a Beneficial Genetic Mutation Can Offset Alzheimer’s Predisposition

Genetic mutations that happen in a gene called apolipoprotein E (APOE) have long been known to have a significant impact on the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. Variants of the gene are have different effects; a variant known as E2 carries a low risk of Alzheimer’s disease, E3 an intermediate risk, and E4 is high risk. A rare genetic variant has now been shown to prevent the increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease caused by APOE4. The findings have been reported in Nature Neuroscience.

This study was made possible because of a woman who inherited a genetic…