Gender insight in Alzheimer's study

Press Association
A faulty gene on the female X chromosome may contribute to the development of Alzheimer's disease in women, scientists said.

The discovery is the first evidence of a sex-specific risk factor for the disease.

Scientists identified a variant in the gene PCDH11X that significantly correlated with susceptibility to late-onset Alzheimer's disease (Load).

When the data was analysed to account for sex, the association was found to be almost entirely confined to women.

PCDH11X lies on the female X chromosome, one of the "packages" of DNA inside the cell nucleus.

It provides the coded building instructions for a protein called protocadherin, which promotes cell-to-cell adhesion and central nerve system signalling.

There is some evidence that...read the whole article

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