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Newly designed Alzheimer's test allows prediction of outbreak
In Germany alone, around 1.2 million people suffer from Alzheimer's disease. Scientists have now developed a new genetic test for the risk of Alzheimer's. This makes it possible to predict the age at which a person will develop the disease.
Researchers at the University of California have now developed a genetic test that can predict the age at which people will develop Alzheimer's disease. The physicians published the results of their study in the medical journal "PLOS Medicines".
Alzheimer's affects more and more older people today. Experts have now developed a test that can predict when sufferers will develop Alzheimer's. (Image: Ocskay Bence / fotolia.com) Newly developed test analyzes 31 different genetic markers
The new test is based on the analysis of 31 genetic markers. If people in the test score high on these genetic markers, they can diagnose when those affected will develop Alzheimer's. When patients were ranked among the top ten percent of participants in terms of risk, it was three times as likely for those people to develop Alzheimer's during the study, the researchers report. Such participants also developed Alzheimer's disease about ten years earlier than the subjects rated below the lowest ten percent, the experts add.
Time of development of Alzheimer's can be predicted
The currently developed test could actually be used in the future to determine a person's subsequent Alzheimer's risk. In addition, it can also be determined at what time the disease will develop, explains author Rahul Desikan of the University of California. If you do not already have dementia, the test will determine your risk at which age you will develop dementia. The results of the tests are based on your age and genetic information, the expert adds.
To develop the test, genetic data from over 70,000 people were evaluated
The so-called polygenic hazard score test was developed with the genetic data of more than 70,000 people. Among them were patients with Alzheimer's disease as well as healthy older subjects, explain the scientists.
Genetics plays a major role in the development of Alzheimer's disease
It is already known that genetics play a very important role in Alzheimer's disease, say the experts. Around a quarter of patients have a strong family history of the disease. This can be partially explained by a gene called ApoE. This gene is known to have a major impact on the ability of people of advanced age to develop Alzheimer's disease, explain the physicians.
The gene occurs in three different variants. A version of ApoE seems to reduce the risk by up to 40 percent. In people with two copies (one of each parent) of the so-called high-risk version of ApoE, the risk of Alzheimer's disease is increased 12-fold, say the experts.
The test has already been tested on an independent patient cohort
The researchers first identified nearly 2,000 differences in genetic code (known as SNP) for the first time. The scientists finally evaluated these differences according to their influence and thus developed a test based on 31 markers. This test was then used to determine individual risk of the disease in an independent patient cohort. Alzheimer's disease was predicted at the age of 84 in people with the high-risk version of ApoE, compared to 95 years in subjects with the lowest ten percent of Alzheimer's risk scores, the physicians add.
Prevention is the key to Alzheimer's disease
Preventing the development of dementia symptoms is a fundamental goal of Alzheimer's research, say the experts. To be successful, we need a precise method of predicting which people are most likely to develop the disease, the researchers explain. The approach of this study has been quite successful in predicting the likelihood of anyone developing dementia over the coming year.
Regular physical and mental activity protects against Alzheimer's
Genetics is only part of the story, and we know that so-called lifestyle factors also affect the risk of developing Alzheimer's, explain the authors. Regular mental and physical activity helps to reduce the risk of Alzheimer's. We can all change our daily habits to reduce our risk of Alzheimer's. To put it simply, everything that is good for our heart is good for our brains too, explain the experts. (As)