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Alzheimer’s Disease Genes May Increase the Risk of Developing Epilepsy

by Dr. Jayashree Gopinath on May 27 2023 10:16 PM
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Alzheimer’s Disease Genes May Increase the Risk of Developing Epilepsy
Scientists have previously found that certain genes can increase a person’s risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease later in life. Now, it appears those same genes may also increase the risk of developing epilepsy, according to a new study published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
This study has found that not only are people with Alzheimers disease (1 Trusted Source
Seizures in Alzheimer Disease: Clinical and Epidemiological Data

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)more likely to develop epilepsy, but also that those with focal epilepsy, which accounts for more than half of all cases of epilepsy, were more likely to develop Alzheimer’s disease.

Looking Into the Genetic Link Between Alzheimer's Disease and Epilepsy

For the study, researchers looked at gene variation throughout the human genomes of 111,326 people with Alzheimer’s disease, and 677,663 people without the disease through what’s known as a genome-wide association study.

Such studies involve looking at long stretches of DNA to identify small differences in the genetic sequence between people with and without Alzheimer’s disease. Researchers used a study design called Mendelian randomization to determine if there was a cause and effect between the genetic variations and the risk of epilepsy.

They found having Alzheimer’s was linked to an increased risk of developing generalized epilepsy (seizures involving occur from both halves of the brain) and focal epilepsy (involving recurring seizures that affect one half of the brain).

Researchers then looked at the genes of 15,212 people with epilepsy, matched to the genes of 29,677 people without epilepsy. People who had focal epilepsy with hippocampal sclerosis had nearly four times the risk of developing Alzheimer’s disease compared to people without epilepsy.

They also analyzed the genes of 13,116 people who had data on the levels of a biomarker for Alzheimer’s disease called amyloid in their cerebrospinal fluid. Lower amounts of the biomarker indicate an increased deposition of amyloid plaques in the brain.

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They found that genes that predicted a lower amount of the biomarker were linked to an increased risk of generalized epilepsy (2 Trusted Source
Neuronal hyperexcitability in Alzheimer’s disease: what are the drivers behind this aberrant phenotype?

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). More effort should be made to screen for seizures in people with Alzheimer’s disease and to understand the impact of seizures on those facing these two challenging neurologic conditions.

A limitation of the study was that participants were of European ancestry, so the results may not be generalizable to people living in other countries and of different ethnicities.

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References:
  1. Seizures in Alzheimer Disease: Clinical and Epidemiological Data - (https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3482722/ )
  2. Neuronal hyperexcitability in Alzheimer’s disease: what are the drivers behind this aberrant phenotype? - (https://www.nature.com/articles/s41398-022-02024-7 )
Source-Eurekalert


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