Are genetic factors important in the aetiology of leukoaraiosis? Results from a memory clinic population
✍ Scribed by Khaled Amar; Sian Macgowan; Gordon Wilcock; Tim Lewis; Margaret Scott
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1998
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 115 KB
- Volume
- 13
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0885-6230
No coin nor oath required. For personal study only.
✦ Synopsis
Objective. To discover whether polymorphism in either the apolipoprotein E (ApoE) or angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) genes is associated with leukoaraiosis, white matter lesions visible on neuroimaging of the brain, which is commonly seen in dementia as well as some normal elderly subjects.
Design. Prospective study of consecutive patients attending our memory disorders clinic, to examine the relationship between leukoaraiosis and polymorphism of the ApoE and ACE genes.
Setting. Memory disorders clinic in Bristol, UK.
Patients. 182 patients attending the memory disorders clinic for investigation of possible dementia of whom 75% were suering from dementia, 20% from memory impairment but no dementia and in 5% of whom a dementing illness was thought to be unlikely; 38% of all patients had visible white matter lesions and 16% had cerebral infarcts.
Measures. Patients and/or carers who agreed to participate in the study had their ACE and ApoE genotype determined and their brain CT/MRI scans were assessed by a neuroradiologist, blind to the result of the genotyping, for the presence or absence of white matter low attenuation.
Results. There was a signi®cant association between white matter lesions and the DD genotype ( p 5 0.05), but not the ApoE genotype. However, this relationship with the DD genotype was only signi®cant for patients with a previous infarct.
Conclusion. Homozygosity of ACE gene deletion polymorphism is a risk factor for white matter lesions when it is associated with cerebral infarction. This suggests that it may be possible to identify subjects who are at greater risk of developing white matter lesions and are at risk of cognitive impairment and possibly dementia.