Lack of an association between apolipoprotein E ϵ4 and Alzheimer's disease in elderly nigerians

Abstract
As part of a community‐based study of Alzheimer's Disease (AD) in a Nigerian population aged 65 years and over, we have determined apolipoprotein E (APOE) genotypes on 56 subjects (39 controls and 17 subjects with dementia, including 12 with AD). The ϵ4 allele of APOE was not associated with AD or dementia in this community‐based sample. The ϵ4 allele frequency was 17.6% in demented patients and 16.7% in AD patients compared with 20.5% in the control subjects. These findings are in marked contrast to the strong association between the ϵ4 allele and AD in our previously reported study with African Americans.