People who carry APOE4, the strongest common genetic risk factor for Alzheimer's disease, now have a clearer picture of one way the gene may harm the brain. Columbia University researchers report that APOE4 drives a buildup of a protein called fibronectin around brain blood vessels, which, in lab and animal models, made the brain's protective barrier leak.
The study, published in Nature Aging and described in a Columbia release published by ScienceDaily, does not offer a treatment. It does point to new targets that drug developers could pursue, and it may eventually help researchers measure whether future therapies are working.
