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. 2018 Aug 1;4(4):e249.
doi: 10.1212/NXG.0000000000000249. eCollection 2018 Aug.

Population genealogy resource shows evidence of familial clustering for Alzheimer disease

Lisa Anne Cannon-Albright  1 , Sue Dintelman  1 , Tim Maness  1 , Johni Cerny  1 , Alun Thomas  1 , Steven Backus  1 , James Michael Farnham  1 , Craig Carl Teerlink  1 , Jorge Contreras  1 , John S K Kauwe  1 , Laurence J Meyer  1
Affiliations

Population genealogy resource shows evidence of familial clustering for Alzheimer disease

Lisa Anne Cannon-Albright et al. Neurol Genet. .

Abstract

Objective: To show the potential of a resource consisting of a genealogy of the US record linked to National Veterans Health Administration (VHA) patient data for investigation of the genetic contribution to health-related phenotypes, we present an analysis of familial clustering of VHA patients diagnosed with Alzheimer disease (AD).

Methods: Patients with AD were identified by the International Classification of Diseases code. The Genealogical Index of Familiality method was used to compare the average relatedness of VHA patients with AD with expected relatedness. Relative risks for AD were estimated in first- to fifth- degree relatives of patients with AD using population rates for AD.

Results: Evidence for significant excess relatedness and significantly elevated risks for AD in relatives was observed; multiple pedigrees with a significant excess of VHA patients with AD were identified.

Conclusions: This analysis of AD shows the nascent power of the US Veterans Genealogy Resource, in early stages, to provide evidence for familial clustering of multiple phenotypes, and shows the utility of this VHA genealogic resource for future genetic studies.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Contribution to the GIF statistic by pairwise genetic distance for cases compared with the average for 1,000 sets of matched controls
Figure 2
Figure 2. Example high-risk AD pedigree identified in the VHA resource
Male founder has 2 marriages as does male grandson of the founder's first marriage; fully shaded are AD cases.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

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    1. Cannon-Albright LA, Thomas A, Goldgar DE, et al. Familiality of cancer in Utah. Cancer Res 1994;54:2378–2385. - PubMed

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