Genetic Testing Could Lead to a Discovery of Genes Predisposing to Alzheimer ' s

I have previously blogged about some of the complexities of genetic testing for carriers of ApoE4 who are at risk for developing Alzheimer's disease (see:New Gene Testing a Threat to Insurance Companies; How They Might Respond). A recent article in theNew York Times addressed this same issue (see:What if You Knew Alzheimer ’s Was Coming for You?). Below is an excerpt from it. The article is quite long so follow the link to read the whole thing if you are interested.Six years ago, at age 49, Julie Gregory paid an online service to sequence her genes, hoping to turn up clues about her poor circulation, blood-sugar swings and general ill health.Instead she learned she had a time bomb hidden in her DNA: two copies of a gene variant, ApoE4, that is strongly linked to Alzheimer ’s. Most Americans with this genotype go on to develop late-onset dementia.....In the difficult months after her genetic test, Ms. Gregory “wanted to be with people who were going through the same devastation,” so she sought out other ApoE4 carriers.In 2013, she and a few others started a nonprofit group and created a website (ApoE4.info) where the community could gather. Today the group has more than 2,000 members. They pore over medical journals, reach out to top researchers in the field and share notes about their experiments with diet, exercise and other lifestyle modifications. Many of the members maintain their anonymity for fear of being “outed” as carriers of the gene variant....Jason...
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