There are an estimated 6.7 million individuals that suffer from Alzheimer's disease throughout the United States. With the high numbers of people suffering from Alzheimer's disease, one must become aware of the causes behind Alzheimer’s and some ways in which they treat Alzheimer’s. Alzheimer’s can be characterized by cognitive decline, behavioral and psychiatric disorders, and declines in functional status. Some symptoms of Alzheimer’s include memory starting to decline and other functions, like language skills and decision-making, becoming more difficult. Eventually, an individual who survives with Alzheimer’s becomes completely reliant on others for assistance with the most basic everyday activities. Alzheimer’s and aging occur in the frontal lobe regions of the brain which selectively communicate with areas of the prefrontal, parietal, cingulate, and parahippocampal cortices which are involved in complex higher-order cognitive processes. With advancing age, inheriting the apolipoprotein-E allele is the greatest risk factor for late-onset Alzheimer's disease since the allele is associated with up to twelve times greater Alzheimer's risk.
Moreover, in Dr. Paitel’s talk, she explains her experiment on using EEG localization to characterize both contributions of aging and apolipoprotein-E allele (E4) on activity in cognitive regions of the cerebellum during the P300 window of successful inhibitory control. What she found was that patterns in the relatively old E4+ sample were consistent with depletion of cerebellar resources which suggests that the posterolateral cerebellum may be impacted early in healthy elders with genetic risk for Alzheimer’s. In another article titled “Relationship between the Presence of the ApoE ε4 Allele and EEG Complexity along the Alzheimer’s Disease Continuum”, Carlos Gomez and his colleagues discovered the role of the E4 allele through EEG localization as well which compares to Dr. Paitel’s experiment in a variety of ways.
One way in which both experiments compare to each other is through the use of EEG localizations to better understand the role of the apolipoprotein-E allele in Alzheimer’s disease. In Gomez’s experiment, he found that the ApoE𝜀4 allele may be associated with cognitive disturbances even before the manifestation of AD symptoms. The way in which Gomez’s experiment compares is through the results of the connection between the E4 allele and motor function. In Paitel’s experiment, she found the E4 allele affecting motor function as well which reflects a connection between the two experiments. The reason why the E4 allele is so important is due to the E4 allele having a direct impact on cholinergic function and the cholinergic deficit might be more severe in AD patients carrying the E4 allele. Thus, both experiments discovered how the E4 allele is one of the leading factors for the symptoms that develop for Alzheimer's disease.
In addition to the E4 allele affecting motor function, Gomez also discovered the association between the E4 alleles and EEG complexity. Gomez found that there were statistically significant differences between non-carrier and carrier HC subjects in the left temporal, frontal, and posterior regions. Also, Gomez found that the left enthorinal region was significantly thinner in E4 carriers than in non-carriers which contributes to an increased risk of developing Alzheimer’s potentially identifiable since childhood. The way in which Gomez’s findings connect with Paitel’s is by both of them discovering the location where Alzheimer's disease affects individuals the most. Both found that the temporal, frontal lobe is more affected than any other regions of the brain which suggests the similarity between the two experiments.
With Alzheimer's disease rapidly increasing throughout the United States, it is important to recognize and bring awareness to ways in which Alzheimer’s can be treated. Since both Paitel and Gomez discovered the role of the E4 allele for individuals suffering from Alzheimer’s, one can become aware of how impactful the allele truly is. Therefore, the apolipoprotein-E allele is one of the most important alleles that affects Alzheimer’s significantly.
References:
Gutiérrez-de Pablo V, Gómez C, Poza J, Maturana-Candelas A, Martins S, Gomes I, Lopes AM, Pinto N, Hornero R. Relationship between the Presence of the ApoE ε4 Allele and EEG Complexity along the Alzheimer’s Disease Continuum. Sensors. 2020; 20(14):3849. https://doi.org/10.3390/s20143849
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