Word: clusterin
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...three new genes, known as clusterin, complement receptor 1 (CR1) and PICALM, were uncovered by two separate research groups, one in Wales and one in France, who linked the genes to the most common form of the memory disorder, late-onset Alzheimer's - the type that affects patients in their 60s or later and accounts for about 90% of all Alzheimer's cases. The only other gene connected with the condition, apolipoprotein E (ApoE), was identified in 1993; since, researchers have tirelessly hunted for other key genes, knowing that 60% to 80% of the progressive, incurable disease is genetically based...
Each group came to their separate conclusions the same way, comparing the genetic activity of their thousands of samples. Williams's team found that among the Alzheimer's patients' samples, certain versions of the genes that coded for clusterin and PICALM were more likely to be active, compared with the controls; in Amouyel's data set, clusterin and CR1 were the two highest ranking genes. While Amouyel's study had also noted PICALM as a high-risk gene of interest and Williams's research had likewise identified CR1, the two groups used different criteria to pinpoint their highest priority genes...
Based on the prevalence of the new genes and variants in the populations studied, the U.K. and French groups speculate that about 20% to 25% of late-onset Alzheimer's can be explained by ApoE; 8% to 12% by clusterin; and another 3% to 5% by CR1 and PICALM...
...these genes, two - clusterin and CR1 - are known to interact with the amyloid protein that builds up in the brain of Alzheimer's patients and eventually causes nerve cell death and cognitive problems. Clusterin may be involved in helping to clear away the amyloid that forms in the brain; but another variant of the gene may also allow amyloid to form fibrils, the sticky protein arms that further anchor amyloid plaques to nerve cells, much like a spider web ensnares prey. In late-onset Alzheimer's, it's possible that the body cannot balance these two functions of clusterin...
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