Among people who fall prey to Alzheimer’s disease, between 40 and 65 percent have a gene variant called APOE4. Scientists have long known the variant significantly increases the risk of developing the neurodegenerative disease, especially when person inherits copies from both parents, but they’re still learning about molecular mechanisms that explain APOE4’s role.
A study published on November 16 in Nature suggests that one way APOE4 may contribute to Alzheimer’s disease is by causing cholesterol to accumulate inside oligodendrocytes, reducing the cells’ capacity to perform their main function: making fatty myelin sheaths that protect neurons and help them convey signals. The research further finds that, in mice with APOE4, clearing the clogged cholesterol—myelin’s main ingredient—and allowing the substance to cross the cells’ membranes partially restored myelin production and improved cognition, suggesting a therapeutic target to combat Alzheimer’s disease.
“They're showing that one of the things that APOE does, which hasn't ...
