ABCA7 -Associated Clinical Features and Molecular Mechanisms in Alzheimer ' s Disease

Alzheimer ' s disease (AD) is the most common type of neurodegenerative disease and its pathogenesis is still unclear. Genetic factors are thought to account for a large proportion of the overall AD phenotypes. ATP-binding cassette transporter A7 (ABCA7) is one of the most important risk gene for AD. Multiple forms of ABCA7 variants significantly increase the risk of AD, such as single-nucleotide polymorphisms, premature termination codon variants, missense variants, variable number tandem repeat, mutations, and alternative splicing. AD patients with ABCA7 variants usually exhibit typical clinical and pathological features of traditional AD with a wide age of onset range. ABCA7 variants can alter ABCA7 protein expression levels and protein structure to affect protein functions such as abnormal lipid metabolism, amyloid precursor protein ( APP) processing, and immune cell function. Specifically, ABCA7 deficiency can cause neuronal apoptosis by inducing endoplasmic reticulum stress through the PERK/eIF2a pathway. Second, ABCA7 deficiency can increase A ss production by upregulating the SREBP2/BACE1 pathway and promoting APP endocytosis. In addition, the ability of microglia to phagocytose and degrade A ss is destroyed by ABCA7 deficiency, leading to reduced clearance of A ss. Finally, disturbance of lipid metabolism may also be an important method by which ABCA7 variants influence the incidence rate of AD. In the future, more attention should be given to different ABCA7 variants and ABCA7 targeted therapies for AD.

Automated summary

Alzheimer's disease is the most common neurodegenerative disease and its pathogenesis is still uncertain. Genetic factors, particularly the ABCA7 gene variants, play a significant role in the development of the disease. These variants can affect protein expression, structure, and function, leading to abnormal lipid metabolism, amyloid precursor protein processing, immune cell dysfunction, and disrupted Aβ clearance. Understanding different ABCA7 variants and developing targeted therapies for Alzheimer's disease are areas of future research.