Identifying Genetic Risk for Late-onset Alzheimer’s Disease: The GERAD Consortium
| Title | Forname | Surname | Institution | Country |
| Professor | Julie | Williams | Cardiff University | UK |
| Institution | Cardiff |
| Street Address | Henry Wellcome Building, Heath Park |
| City | Cardiff |
| Postcode | CF14 4XN |
- United Kingdom
Medical Research Council
1322519.23
01-09-2010
24
Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias
Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is a common, heritable, genetically complex disorder. Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have succeeded in identifying over 400 genetic variants contributing to complex phenotypes, in less than two years. Recently, our consortium performed a GWAS in 16,000 AD and control samples, which succeeded in identifying two new susceptibility genes (CLU: p= 8.5 x10-10, odds ratio (OR) = 0.86 & PICALM: p= 1.3 x10-9, OR = 0.86), provided strong evidence for the existence of several more (13 variants observed p 1 x 10-5 , 4 expected by chance: p= 7.5 x 10-6)and confirmed a third susceptibility gene CR1. We will undertake a powerful GWAS (+55,000 individuals) of AD, aiming to identify 10 new susceptibility genes contributing to disease risk, modifying age at onset or contributing to copy number variation. Findings will be screened for AD susceptibility pathways and tested for relationships with clinical symptoms. This proposal will produce a definitive study of common genetic risk in AD and will deliver around 20 new susceptibility genes, CNVs and pathways in 2 years. Identifying new susceptibility genes will pinpoint primary causal pathways to disease and provide the basis for future preventative and therapeutic interventions, contribute to early susceptibility testing and increase UK research capacity.