Effects of the Apolipoprotein E Genotype on the Therapeutic Response in Alzheimer's Disease Patients in

Background: This retrospective research was conducted to analyze the impact of the apolipoprotein (Apo) Ee4 gene on the clinical response to donepezil among Taiwanese patients with Alzheimer's disease (AD). Results: In total, 76 AD patients with a mean age of 75.4 years ± 8.4 years were eventually recruited for this study. Twenty patients (26.3%) were ApoEe4 positive. Kaplan-Meier survival estimates of the time to functional decline for the ApoEe4-negative and the ApoEe4-positive groups were compared. Log- rank test results indicated that the ApoEe4-positive group had poorer treatment response with significant difference when function was measured using the CASI and global CDR (p = 0.017 and p < 0.010 respectively). After adjustment for age, sex, and educational attainment, the ApoEe4 status still affected the time to functional decline. Conclusion: In the Taiwanese population, ApoEe4 may be negatively associated with the treatment response in AD patients treated with donepezil. These findings suggest that a genotype test for ApoE in AD patients may facilitate therapeutic decision making by physicians and care-givers.