The Link Between ApoE4 and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy appears to be weakening

Dr. Robert Cantu

In the current issue of Nature Medicine, Dr. Robert Cantu, co-director of the Center for Traumatic Encephalopathy at Boston University, indicates that the suggested link between ApoE4 carrier status and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy (CTE) might not be as strong as some earlier studies have suggested. Seeming to be referring to data that has yet to be published, Cantu is quoted in the article as saying the following: "“I must say we’re not finding a high correlation” between CTE and the e4 variant.

(Reference: Katsnelson A, Gene tests for brain injury still far from the football field. Nature Medicine. June 2011. 17:6, p. 638)