The polymorphism in exon 3 of the low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein gene is weakly associated with Alzheimer's disease.

The low density lipoprotein receptor-related protein (LRP) gene is a candidate gene for Alzheimer's disease (AD) due to its role as a receptor for apolipoprotein E (apoE), a major genetic risk factor for late-onset familial and sporadic AD. Recently, several studies have reported a correlation between a polymorphism (C766T) in exon 3 of LRP and AD. We examined this polymorphism in a Caucasian population of 225 neuropathologically confirmed cases with AD and 187 elderly cases without any AD neuropathological changes. We found that the exon 3 LRP C/C genotype was slightly but not significantly higher in the AD group when compared to the control group. A meta-analysis of previous studies revealed only a weak correlation of this polymorphism with AD (odds ratio 1.34, [95% CI 1.16-1.54], P < 0.0001). These data indicate that the polymorphism in exon 3 of LRP is only a minor risk factor for AD and that another locus on chromosome 12 is likely responsible for the associations observed in other studies.