Gender bias in Alzheimer’s?

The results of a new Israeli study, released earlier this week, focused on the gene known as the “ADNP.” This gene regulates proteins involved in the human body’s development, and it appears to cause gender-specific tendencies toward Alzheimer’s disease.

Women are more likely than men to develop Alzheimer’s, and the study suggests that men and women should be tested separately because they may respond differently to a given treatment.

Professor Ilana Gozes explained that behavioural differences in male and female mice, both with and without the ADNP gene, may suggest differing gender responses in humans. While further research is needed, this study might stimulate the development of new and separate drug treatments for the different sexes.

Though we are on the road to a treatment for Alzheimer’s, and this research is good news, a full treatment is still not in sight. The need for proper incapacity planning still exists.

This ad ran in the Richmond Review on March 27, 2015.