The role of APOE-ε4 in longitudinal cognitive decline -: MacArthur studies of successful aging

Background: While a genetic risk factor for late-onset AD, the effects of the is an element of4 allele of the APOE gene on cognitive functioning more generally remain unclear. Objective: To assess the role of the is an element of4 allele of the APOE gene in longitudinal cognitive decline. Methods: Multiple measures of cognitive function were assessed longitudinally in the MacArthur Successful Aging Study, a population-based cohort free of frank impairment at baseline. Subjects were 965 Caucasian and African American men and women from Durham NC, East Boston, MA, and New Haven, CT, aged 70 to 79 years, recruited in 1988 through 1989, who completed two follow-up evaluations, one at 3 years and another at 7 years. Results: At the first follow-up, modest but significant declines in naming and spatial ability were associated with the APOE-is an element of4 genotype. By the second follow-up, more pronounced and significant associations were noted between the APOE-is an element of4 genotype and cognitive decline from six of the eight cognitive outcomes. After 7 years, APOE-is an element of4 allele carriers were twice as likely to have declined on a global cognitive score (odds ratio = 2.0; 95% CI: 1.1, 3.6) as noncarriers. Conclusions: APOE-is an element of4 is associated with cognitive decline among a high-functioning elderly cohort, with effects most pronounced after 7 years of follow-up. Hence, the is an element of4 allele either may function as a risk factor for cognitive impairment in normal aging across a broad spectrum of domains or may exert detectable effects early in a long prodromal AD trajectory.