Vasunilashorn Sarinnapha, Glei Dana A, Lin Yu-Hsuan, Goldman Noreen
Office of Population Research, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA.
Biodemography Soc Biol. 2013;59(1):57-67. doi: 10.1080/19485565.2013.778703.
The apolipoprotein E (ApoE) gene, which has three common alleles (ϵ2, ϵ3, and ϵ4), has been linked to a number of health outcomes and longevity. The ϵ2 allele has been reported to have neuroprotective effects, whereas the ϵ4 allele has been shown to be a risk factor for cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's disease in various populations. The relationships between ApoE and mortality and ApoE and physical function, however, are not clear-cut. We used the Social Environment and Biomarkers of Aging Study (SEBAS) to examine the relationship between ApoE polymorphisms and physical and pulmonary function in approximately 1,000 Taiwanese adults aged 53 years and older in 2006. In the 2006 SEBAS wave, measures of physical function included self-reported difficulties with respect to activities of daily living (ADLs) and other physical function indicators, as well as performance-based measures of grip strength (kg), walking speed (m/s) over a distance of 3 m, and chair stand speed (stand/s). Peak expiratory flow (PEF; L/min) rate was also examined as an indicator of pulmonary function. We used logistic regression models to determine the association between ApoE and inability to complete each of the tests of physical and pulmonary function. These models revealed no significant association between ApoE carrier status and any of the indicators of function. Among participants able to complete a given task, we next used linear regression models to examine self-reported limitations with ADLs and performance on the given test by ApoE carrier status. Similarly, there were no significant relationships between ApoE carrier status and the measures of function. Our estimates provide further confirmation that the ApoE gene may not be a risk factor for functional decline among older Taiwanese adults.
载脂蛋白E（ApoE）基因有三个常见等位基因（ϵ2、ϵ3和ϵ4），它与许多健康结果及长寿有关。据报道，ϵ2等位基因具有神经保护作用，而ϵ4等位基因在不同人群中已被证明是心血管疾病和阿尔茨海默病的一个风险因素。然而，ApoE与死亡率以及ApoE与身体功能之间的关系并不明确。我们利用社会环境与衰老生物标志物研究（SEBAS），于2006年对约1000名年龄在53岁及以上的台湾成年人进行了ApoE基因多态性与身体及肺功能关系的研究。在2006年的SEBAS调查中，身体功能测量包括自我报告的日常生活活动（ADL）困难及其他身体功能指标，以及基于表现的握力（千克）、3米距离的步行速度（米/秒）和从椅子上站起的速度（站/秒）测量。呼气峰值流速（PEF；升/分钟）率也作为肺功能指标进行了检测。我们使用逻辑回归模型来确定ApoE与无法完成每项身体和肺功能测试之间的关联。这些模型显示，ApoE携带者状态与任何功能指标之间均无显著关联。在能够完成给定任务的参与者中，接下来我们使用线性回归模型，根据ApoE携带者状态来研究自我报告的ADL限制及给定测试中的表现。同样，ApoE携带者状态与功能测量之间也没有显著关系。我们的估计进一步证实，ApoE基因可能不是台湾老年成年人功能衰退的风险因素。
