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news.In a discovery which could lead to future treatments, researchers at Celera Genomics have found that variants in the DAPK1 gene correlate strongly with risk for late-onset Alzheimer's disease.
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In Celera’s research studies, two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified in the DAPK1 (death-associated protein kinase 1) gene that showed significant association with late-onset Alzheimer’s disease.
In addition to the genetic finding, this research study also showed that the disease-associated SNPs directly or indirectly modulate the expression of the DAPK1 gene. According to the company, this observation provides a potential biological explanation for the association of the DAPK1 variants with Alzheimer’s disease.
“This research study provides valuable insights into the genetic contribution to Alzheimer’s disease,” said Dr Michael Owen, professor of psychiatry at Cardiff University, UK, and a co-author on the paper. “The DAPK1 gene has been a target for drug discovery in other diseases, and a variety of drug compounds can now be tested for their effect on learning and memory in animal models of Alzheimer’s disease.”
These research findings were presented at the International Conference on Alzheimer’s disease 2006 in Madrid, Spain.