Daily Archives: July 4, 2022

MONDAY, July 4, 2022 (HealthDay News) Researchers studying genes involved in Alzheimers disease have identified a new gene, called MGMT, that increases risk for this common dementia in women.

This is one of a few and perhaps the strongest associations of a genetic risk factor for Alzheimers that is specific to women, said co-senior study author Lindsay Farrer, chief of biomedical genetics at Boston University School of Medicine.

For the new study, a team from the University of Chicago and Boston University School of Medicine looked for genetic links using two unrelated datasets and different methods.

One dataset was from a large family of Hutterites, a central European group whose isolated culture and small gene pool have made it a popular focus for studying genetic determinants of disease. All the people studied for Alzheimers in this data were women.

The team also analyzed genetic data from a pool of 10,340 women who lacked APOE4. That gene, a well-known Alzheimers risk factor, is carried by about 60% of people with European ancestry and about 26% of the general population.

For both sets of data, the new gene MGMT was significantly associated with developing Alzheimers disease.

This finding is particularly robust because it was discovered independently in two distinct populations using different approaches," Farrer said. "While the finding in the large dataset was most pronounced in women who dont have APOE4, the Hutterite sample was too small to evaluate this pattern with any certainty.

Alzheimers disease is the most common cause of dementia and affects more than 5.8 million people in the United States.

This study highlighted the value of founder populations for genetic mapping studies of diseases like Alzheimers, said co-senior study author Carole Ober, chairwoman of human genetics at the University of Chicago.

Additional study will be needed to understand why MGMT influences Alzheimers risk in women. The authors noted that the study demonstrates the importance of searching for risk factors that may be specific to one gender.

The findings were published June 30 in Alzheimers & Dementia: The Journal of the Alzheimer's Association.

More information

The Alzheimers Association has more information on Alzheimers disease.

SOURCE: Boston University School of Medicine, news release, June 30, 2022

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Your blood type can reveal much more about your health than you think! According to Penn Medicine and the National Library of Medicine, certain blood types are associated more with specific diseases, but don't panic just yet. Choices like diet, fitness and good habits play a major role in health as well, so while you may be at a slightly increased risk, keeping a healthy lifestyle makes a difference. Penn Medicine physician Dr. Douglas Guggenheim, MD, Hematology, Medical Oncology said, "While your blood type may put you at a higher risk for certain conditions, nothing is definitive. Being aware of how your blood type may impact your health is a good start, but it's also just as important to see your physician for regular check-ups and maintain a healthy lifestyle." Read onand to ensure your health and the health of others, don't miss these Sure Signs You've Already Had COVID.

The National Library of Medicine says, "The susceptibility to various diseases, such as cancer, cardiovascular diseases, infections and hematologic disorders, cognitive disorders, circulatory diseases, metabolic diseases, and malaria, has been linked with ABO blood groups. Moreover, blood group AB individuals were found to be susceptible to an increased risk of cognitive impairment which was independent of geographic region, age, race, and gender. Disorders such as hypertension, obesity, dyslipidemia, cardiovascular disease (CVD), and diabetes were also more prevalent in individuals with cognitive impairment." The site added, "Several studies related to the ABO phenotype show that genetically determined human ABO blood groups were correspondingly linked with an increased risk of various infectious and noninfectious diseases. However, further investigations are needed particularly on the molecular level of ABO blood groups and their association with various diseases."

The National Library of Medicine explains, "Stomach Cancer is the fourth most public cancer worldwide and the second leading cause of cancer deaths; reliable studies since the 1950s have shown that blood type A persons have about a 20% higher risk of stomach cancer than blood type O individuals. The 2012 metadata analysis showed that type A persons had an odds ratio of 1.11 and type O persons had an odds ratio of 0.91 for gastric cancer; in addition, blood type A persons had significantly greater rates of H. pylori infection than non-A blood type victims (oddsratio = 1.42). This is important because a current study of ABO blood types and H. pylori found that the risk of advanced precancerous gastric lesions was considerably affected by the presence or absence in the bacterial DNA of two SNPs in the cytotoxin-associated gene A (CagA), recognized as CagA-positive and CagA-negative strains. Thus, ABO antigens on the gastric epithelium are binding sites for the H. pylori bacterium, which then injects CagA virulence protein into the cellular cytoplasm."6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Penn Medicine reports, "It may seem obvious that your blood type is related to your heart, since your heart pumps blood to the rest of your body. But your blood type can actually put you at a higher risk for conditions such as heart attack and heart disease. This is because of a gene called the ABO gene a gene that's present in people with A, B, or AB blood types. The only blood type that doesn't have this gene is Type O. If you have the ABO gene and you live in an area with high pollution levels, you may be at a greater risk of heart attack than those who don't have the gene."

Dr. Guggenheim said, "The ABO gene can also increase your risk of coronary artery disease (CAD). CAD develops when the arteries that supply blood to and from your heart harden and narrow which can cause a heart attack if they become blocked."

Penn Medicine states, "There are plenty of factors that have been connected with a higher risk of cancer, and it can sometimes be hard to know which ones to look into more seriously than others. However, people with Type A blood have been found to have a higher risk of stomach cancer specifically, compared to those with other blood types. The ABO gene may play a role with a heightened cancer risk, as well. This gene has been connected to other cancers, including lung, breast, colorectal, prostate, liver, and cervical cancers. This correlation has been studied for more than 60 years, and while research continues to show a correlation, there is no definitive explanation as to why the ABO gene may put you at a higher risk for some cancers."

According to Penn Medicine, "The ABO gene is connected with brain function and memory loss. People who have blood types A, B, and AB are up to 82 percent more likely to develop cognition and memory problems which can lead to dementia compared to those with Type O. One possible reason for this memory loss is the fact that blood type can lead to things like high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and diabetes. These conditions can cause cognitive impairment and dementia. Blood type has been connected with stroke, too, which can occur when the blood flow to the brain is disrupted."

Heather Newgen

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If You Have This Blood Type, Be Worried About Your Health Eat This Not That - Eat This, Not That

The 2021 H.L. Holmes Award was presented to Dr. Khalid Al-Zahrani for his novel advancements in breast cancer research. In developing a never-before-seen method, he is able to screen for specific cancer driving genes and has validated his research with promising results.

Over two years, the $180,000 award will support Dr. Al-Zahrani in the development of a gene system to identify the cause of basal-like breast cancer (BLBC). As BLBC disproportionally affects younger, premenopausal women and has a relatively poor clinical prognosis, his research will expand our knowledge of this aggressive cancer subtype which could greatly improve existing treatment methods.

Dr. Al-Zahrani will continue to work with Mount Sinai's Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute in Toronto where he has been a post-doctoral research fellow since 2019 in Dr. Daniel Schramek's group, a world-renowned expert in genetic models of cancer. Dr. Al-Zahrani completed his Ph.D. (Philosophy, Cellular and Molecular Medicine) and B.Sc. (Specialization in Biochemistry) at the University of Ottawa and has published over a dozen articles in scientific and medical journals. As a Canadian with roots in Scotland and Saudi Arabia, Dr. Al-Zahrani is excited to develop new medicine that will help people worldwide.

Already, Dr. Al-Zahrani is exploring the uncharted field of BLBC copy number alterations with the development of a novel in vivo CRISPR technology. BLBC copy number alterations are parts of the DNA that are gained or lost that cause tumors to develop from normal cells, and in vivo refers to experiments in whole, living organisms. Using the CRISPR system, researchers can edit genes by activating or deactivating specific parts of genetic code, which allows for precise manipulation of DNA. Dr. Al-Zahrani is a pioneer in the field of BLBC genetics as he aims to understand the underlying mechanisms that drive cancer cells. His findings may uncover new approaches in the way we provide treatment.

Over two years, Dr. Al-Zahrani generated 14 different gene targeting systems in hopes of finding an all-in-one solution to target and screen specific cancer cells. He developed a technology termed KOALA (Knock-Out and Activation Linked Assay) which, when paired with CRISPR, can pick out certain parts of genetic code and trigger precise activation or deactivation. Overcoming numerous roadblocks, he finally achieved a system sufficient for use in mouse specimens. His method will allow for screening of specific BLBC genes and may ultimately identify parts of genetic code that trigger tumor growth. Importantly, KOALA allows for the rapid screening of thousands of cancer-causing genes in a single experiment, whereas conventional techniques screen a single potential cancer-causing gene at a time. The efficiency of his system is validated by discovering several new potential targets for treating BLBC. This is a pivotal step in understanding breast cancer as it greatly improves upon existing methodologies by saving both time and money in the identification of important cancer-driving genes. In combination with conventional tumor-suppressing gene therapy, identification of specific cancer-causing genes allows for highly targeted therapeutic approaches.

While mouse models are suitable for initial experiments, Dr. Al-Zahrani will carefully evaluate further findings in human patient samples. His innovative progress has the potential to uncover new effective cancer treatments and improve the clinical prognosis of basal-like breast cancer.

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The NRC HL Holmes Award supports the development of technology to target and treat basal-like breast cancer - National Research Council Canada -...

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Twenty-one million. Thats the number of genetic variations in the human genome that researchers are sifting through to identify patterns predisposing people to Alzheimers disease.

Thanks to international collaboration being advanced by faculty of The University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, also known as UT Health San Antonio, more genetic variations for Alzheimers disease are known today than ever before. The list of gene variants recognized for late-onset Alzheimers grew from one in 2009 to 40 in 2022 and, this spring, scientists published an expanded list of 75, some of which are considered prime drug targets.

Its a huge haystack, and Alzheimers-related genetic variations, like needles, are miniscule in comparison. Dr. Sudha Seshadri, Habil Zare, Ph.D., and other faculty at the UT Health San Antonio Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimers and Neurodegenerative Diseases are investigators on a global project to help answer many of Alzheimers riddles.

Seshadri is a founding principal investigator of the International Genomics of Alzheimers Project, or IGAP. Biggs Institute faculty contributed data for the newest research from IGAP, published in Nature Genetics, and helped craft worldwide discussion on implications of the findings.

Genomic data of half a million people were used in this latest IGAP study, including 30,000 people with confirmed Alzheimers disease and 47,000 people categorized as proxies.

In Alzheimers disease research you need many samples, because some of these variants are very rare, and if you want to detect them, you need to study many, many people, said Zare, assistant professor of cell systems and anatomy in the Joe R. and Teresa Lozano Long School of Medicine and an expert in computational biology and bioinformatics. The only way to get there is through collaboration between centers and consortia, and IGAP was established for such kind of collaboration.

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We are looking for the genetic basis so as to better understand all the different types of biology that may be responsible for Alzheimers disease, said Seshadri, founding director of the Biggs Institute and professor of neurology in the Long School of Medicine. As we include data from more and more people, we are able to find variants that are fairly rare, that are only seen in about 1% of the population.

In 2009, the year of the first genome-wide association studies, researchers knew of one gene, called APOE, associated with late-onset Alzheimers disease. Before journal publication on April 4, 2022, researchers had a list of 40 such genes. This new paper confirmed 33 of them in a larger population sample and added 42 new genetic variants not described before.

The study published in Nature Genetics is confined to certain people groups, which makes it impossible to generalize the gene variations worldwide.

One of the challenges with this paper, as well, is it is largely in persons of European ancestry, Seshadri said. So we hope to bring, over the next few years, a much larger sample of Hispanic and other minority populations to further improve gene discovery.

The South Texas Alzheimers Disease Research Center (ADRC), a collaboration of the Glenn Biggs Institute at UT Health San Antonio and The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, is on a mission to bring the regions sizable Hispanic population into genetic studies and other initiatives such as clinical trials. ADRCs are National Institute on Aging Centers of Excellence.

Older Hispanic adults are estimated to be at 1.5 times greater risk of Alzheimers and other dementias than non-Hispanic whites. Dementia is costing individuals, caregivers, families and the nation an estimated $321 billion in 2022, according to the Alzheimers Association.

As the quest to end the suffering endured by individuals and families continues, the researchers acknowledge the partners who play significant roles.

We would like to thank each of the collaborators within IGAP, and all the patients and families that join such studies, and the National Institute on Aging, which is our funder, Seshadri said.

Read about this research findingthat increases the worlds knowledge of Alzheimers disease and sparks drug potential.

The Glenn Biggs Institute for Alzheimers and Neurodegenerative Diseases at UT Health San Antonio is a National Institute on Aging-designated Alzheimers Disease Research Center dedicated to providing comprehensive dementia care while advancing treatment through clinical trials and research.

UT Health San Antonio, South Texas largest research university, has an annual research portfolio of $350 million and a Department of Education designation as a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Its Long School of Medicine is listed among U.S. News & World Reports best medical schools, ranking in the top 30% nationwide for research.

Learn more about how UT Health San Antonio does everything it takes to make lives better.

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UT Health San Antonio on global team discovering Alzheimers clues - San Antonio Report