Word: genese
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In fact, most healthy people have some version of the three new genes. But their presence alone does not necessarily translate to an elevated risk of Alzheimer's. Each of the genes comes in different forms, or variants, that confer different levels of risk - some variants actually protect against Alzheimer...
"These are common genes, we all have them," Michael Owen, a member of the U.K. team, told reporters at a briefing in London announcing the results. "The key issue is what hand of cards you are dealt, the combination of genes you have that determines your risk."
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.
Of 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...
On the other hand, the discovery of PICALM came as a bit of a surprise. That gene's activity affects the junction between nerve cells, where various neurochemicals work to relay signals from one nerve cell to another. While most of the research attention in Alzheimer's has been on...