This study joins a recent report from Australia (Laws et al., 2005) that associates variations in a single nucleotide that affect TNF-alpha (a single nucleotide polymorphism, or SNP) with the risk of developing Alzheimer disease. These studies, together with the recent report from the associated groups from the University of Washington and UC Davis (Ramos et al., 2006) provide further clinical evidence suggesting that TNF-alpha may be involved in AD pathogenesis.

References:
1. Laws SM, Perneczky R, Wagenpfeil S, Muller U, Forstl H, Martins RN, Kurz A, Riemenschneider M. TNF polymorphisms in Alzheimer disease and functional implications on CSF beta-amyloid levels. Hum Mutat. 2005 Jul;26(1):29-35. Abstract

2. Ramos EM, Lin MT, Larson EB, Maezawa I, Tseng LH, Edwards KL, Schellenberg GD, Hansen JA, Kukull WA, Jin LW. Tumor necrosis factor alpha and interleukin 10 promoter region polymorphisms and risk of late-onset Alzheimer disease. Arch Neurol, 2006. 63(8): p. 1165-9. Abstract

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