Rates of Aging, APOE Genotypes, and Cause-Specific Mortality in the Cache County Study

Ken R. Smith, University of Utah
Kathleen Hayden, Duke University
Geraldine P. Mineau, University of Utah
Richard Kerber, Huntsman Cancer Institute

The purpose of this study is to assess the role of the Apolipoprotein E (APOE) gene in affecting all-cause and cause-specific mortality risks in a population-based cohort of elderly subjects. The study relies on 4701 subjects recruited into the Cache County Study on Memory and Aging. The Cache County Study has recently been enriched with the addition of several important variables obtained from the Utah Population Database. These variables include measures of familial excess longevity along with cause of death information obtained from death certificates of Cache County Study decedents. We show that the deleterious effects of APOE genotypes (e22, e34, e34) occur for several important cause-specific risks of mortality (cardiovascular, cancer, respiratory, nervous system (Parkinson's, Alzheimer's) and that their effects are attenuated when they occur to individuals with a family history of excess longevity.