La genetic component plays a major role in the genesis and evolution of the Alzheimer's diseaseA team of scientists from theInserm, of thePasteur Institute of Lille, of theUniversity of Lille and University Hospital of Lille, internationally recognized for its research on the genetics of the disease, has just published an important discovery, paving the way for the optimization of therapeutic trials.
While Alzheimer's disease affects approximately one million people In France, with treatments still limited, researchers from Lille have made a major breakthrough.
A team led by the Dr Jean-Charles Lambert, Inserm research director within the laboratory "Risk factors and molecular determinants of age-related diseases" (Inserm, IPasteur Institute of Lille, University of Lille, Lille University Hospital) published in Nature Genetics an important discovery about the role of the gene Apolipoprotein E (APOE), recognized as the major genetic factor in the disease. Researchers show that although there is a common genetic component in different populations around the world, the Apolipoprotein E gene (the major genetic factor in the pathology) alone accounts for a large part of the genetic variability related to risk.
This gene strongly influences the risk of developing Alzheimer's disease. By analysing diverse populations around the world — Australia, Africa, Asia, America and Europe — researchers show that differences in this gene explain a large part of the variations in genetic risk according to populations.
The team identified two distinct genetic profiles linked to the risk of Alzheimer's disease. The first is primarily influenced by the APOE gene, recognized as the major genetic factor, whose impact varies depending on the populations studied. The second profile corresponds to a combination of many other genetic factors, which remain quite similar between different populations around the world.
This advance paves the way for optimized selection of high-risk patients in therapeutic trials, towards more personalized medicine adapted to global genetic diversity.
U1167: “Risk factors and molecular determinants of age-related diseases”
INSERM U1167 – University of Lille – Lille University Hospital
Transferability of European-derived Alzheimer's disease polygenic risk scores across multiancestry populations Aude Nicolas et al.
Nature Genetics. 2025 Jun 18. doi:10.1038/s41588-025-02227-w.
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