Alzheimer's disease: No effect of the CDK5 gene on CSF biomarkers, neuropathology or disease risk

Cyclin-dependent kinase 5 (cdk5) has been identified as one of the kinases that phosphorylates tau at several Alzheimer's disease (AD)-associated sites. Cdk5 is predominantly expressed in neurons, and has higher activity in AD brains than in non-demented brains. To investigate the effect of the CDK5 gene on AD, we analyzed an SNP of the CDK5 gene (rs2069456) in 347 patients with AD and in 157 controls. CDK5 genetic data was investigated in subgroups in relation to biochemical and neuropathological markers for AD. We found no significant differences in genotype or allele distributions between AD patients and controls. None of the CDK5 gene variants influenced biomarkers for AD.