Alzheimer's Disease is a brain disorder that is the most common form of dementia among the elderly. In America, an estimated 4.5 million suffer from AD and that number is expected to escalate to as many as 16 million by 2050. Although there are various risk factors associated with AD, the most common for late-onset AD is a protein called apolipoprotein E, or apoE.

In a recent study however, after evaluating more than 1,700 Alzheimer's cases and more than 1,700 age-matched controls, Celera identifies a third gene, RPS3A, associated with late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD), in addition to two other previously identified AD-linked genes: glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (GAPD) gene and also in the amyloid precursor protein binding protein B2 (APPB2).

Results demonstrated that single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in a gene that is homologous to the RPS3A gene were associated with Alzheimer's and implicate this gene, adjacent genes, or other functional variants in the development and progression of this disease.

The results, published online in the American Journal of Human Genetics, provide insights on the development of the disease, which may subsequently be used in the development and design of new diagnostic methods and possibly, gene therapy.

Read more about Celera Diagnostics, Alzheimer's disease and the details of the study from Celera or from the JHG.