Case Control Study
Copyright ©The Author(s) 2021. Published by Baishideng Publishing Group Inc. All rights reserved.
World J Clin Cases. Feb 16, 2021; 9(5): 1005-1015
Published online Feb 16, 2021. doi: 10.12998/wjcc.v9.i5.1005
Metabolic syndrome, ApoE genotype, and cognitive dysfunction in an elderly population: A single-center, case-control study
Jie-Yu Wang, Li Zhang, Jia Liu, Wei Yang, Li-Na Ma
Jie-Yu Wang, Li Zhang, Jia Liu, Wei Yang, Li-Na Ma, Department of Geriatrics, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Medicine, Beijing 100053, China
Author contributions: Wang JY, Zhang L, Liu J, and Yang W conceived and designed the research; Zhang L and Liu J collected data and conducted research; Wang JY, Yang W, and Ma LN analyzed and interpreted data; Wang JY and Yang W wrote the initial paper; Yang W and Ma LN revised the paper; Wang JY had primary responsibility for final content; All authors read and approved the final manuscript.
Supported by Basic and Clinical Cooperation Project of Capital Medical University, No. 16JL82.
Institutional review board statement: The protocol for the study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, No. [2108]112. All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethics standards of the institutional and national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethics standards.
Informed consent statement: Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects included in the study.
Conflict-of-interest statement: The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.
Data sharing statement: The datasets generated during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
STROBE statement: The authors have read the STROBE Statement-checklist of items, and the manuscript was prepared and revised according to the STROBE Statement-checklist of items.
Open-Access: This article is an open-access article that was selected by an in-house editor and fully peer-reviewed by external reviewers. It is distributed in accordance with the Creative Commons Attribution NonCommercial (CC BY-NC 4.0) license, which permits others to distribute, remix, adapt, build upon this work non-commercially, and license their derivative works on different terms, provided the original work is properly cited and the use is non-commercial. See: http://creativecommons.org/Licenses/by-nc/4.0/
Corresponding author: Wei Yang, MD, Chief Doctor, Department of Geriatrics, Xuanwu Hospital, Capital Medical University, National Clinical Research Center for Geriatric Medicine, No. 45 Changchun Street, Xicheng District, Beijing 100053, China. yangw_79@163.com
Received: September 7, 2020
Peer-review started: September 7, 2020
First decision: December 3, 2020
Revised: December 12, 2020
Accepted: December 22, 2020
Article in press: December 22, 2020
Published online: February 16, 2021
ARTICLE HIGHLIGHTS
Research background

Cognitive impairment is a serious public problem in the elderly population. Metabolic syndrome (MetS) is increasingly prevalent in the global population. It remains unknown whether MetS is associated with cognitive decline in elderly, and whether distribution of the ApoEε4 allele may modify the association.

Research motivation

To provide pilot evidence regarding the roles of MetS and distribution of ApoEε4 allele with the occurrence of cognitive impairment in elderly population, and to improve the understanding of the association between metabolic components, genetic factors, and cognitive decline.

Research objectives

To clarify the association between MetS, distribution of ApoEε4 allele, and cognitive impairment in an elderly Chinese population and the continuous influence of MetS and distribution of ApoEε4 allele on cognitive function within 1 year.

Research methods

An age- and gender-matched case-control study was performed. The distribution of ApoEε4 was assessed with PCR fragment length polymorphism analysis. Cognitive function was evaluated by mini-mental status examination at the 1-year follow-up examination.

Research results

MetS and ApoEε4 carrier status were potential risk factors related to cognitive dysfunction in an elderly population. No significant interaction between MetS and ApoEε4 was observed. The effects of MetS and ApoEε4 on the deterioration of cognitive function over a 1-year follow-up period were continuous.

Research conclusions

MetS and ApoEε4 carrier status were independently associated with cognitive dysfunction at baseline and within 1 year in an elderly population.

Research perspectives

People with MetS and ApoEε4 carrier status may have a higher risk of cognitive decline. These results may be helpful for the identification of elderly people at high risk for cognitive decline, and targeted intervention against these factors may be beneficial for cognitive function in these people.