Family Ties: How Family History Affects Alzheimer’s Risk

How important is one’s family history when determining Alzheimer’s risk? Returning guests Drs. Jessica Langbaum and Sterling Johnson discuss the latest research on family history and genetic risk factors and share their perspectives on the topic, specifically focusing on the role of the APOE gene as a risk factor.

Guests: Sterling Johnson, PhD, leader, Wisconsin Registry for Alzheimer’s Prevention (WRAP), associate director, Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center, associate director, Wisconsin Alzheimer’s Institute, lead principal investigator, ADRC Consortium for Clarity in ADRD Research Through Imaging (CLARiTI), Jean R. Finley Professor of Geriatrics and Dementia, UW School of Medicine and Public Health, and Jessica Langbaum, PhD, senior director of research strategy, Banner Alzheimer’s Institute, overseer, Observational Research Program, Clinical Trials Program, Alzheimer’s Prevention Initiative, director, Alzheimer’s Prevention Registry, director, Arizona Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center

Show Notes

Read Dr. Langbaum’s viewpoint, “The Risk of Alzheimer Disease in APOE4 Homozygotes,” on the Journal of American Medical Association (JAMA) website.

Read Dr. Johnson’s article, “APOE4 homozygosity represents a distinct genetic form of Alzheimer’s disease,” on Nature Medicine’s website.

Read Dr. Chin’s opinion piece, “What to do if your family has a history of Alzheimer’s,” mentioned at 2:04 on the Wisconsin State Journal’s website. Please note there is a paywall to access the article.

Read Dr. Tobey Betthauser’s paper, “Multi-method investigation of factors influencing amyloid onset and impairment in three cohorts,” mentioned by Dr. Johnson at 16:50, on the National Library of Medicine’s website.

Learn more about the Banner Alzheimer’s Institute on their website.

Read about the GeneMatch program from the Alzheimer’s Prevention Registry on their website.

Learn more about the Arizona Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center on their website.

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