This page is alzhub.org's plain-English summary of a published study, not the paper itself. It is generated from the record we hold for this study, sourced and linked below — check the original for the full text and methods.

63/100

✓ Peer-reviewed alzhub usefulness score 63 out of 100. Disparities

Topic: Brain proteins, microglia and lab models

Limited evidence suggests that the APOEε4 allele may confer risk for CTE, but previous studies were small with limited scope. Results Of 364 consecutive brain donors (100% male; 53 [14.6%] self-identified as Black and 311 [85.4%] as White; median [IQR] age, 65 [47-77] years) 20 years or older, there were 294 individuals with CTE and 70 controls. Among donors older than 65 years, APOEε4 status was significantly associated with CTE stage (odds ratio [OR], 2.34 [95% CI, 1.30-4.20]; false discovery rate [FDR]-corrected P = .01) and quantitative p-tau burden in the dorsolateral frontal lobe (β, 1.39 [95% CI, 0.83-1.94]; FDR-corrected P = 2.37 × 10-5). Across 11 brain regions, significant associations were observed for semiquantitative p-tau burden in the frontal and parietal cortices, amygdala, and entorhinal cortex (OR range, 2.45-3.26). Associations were significantly larger in the older half of the sample. There was no significant association for CTE status. Association sizes were similar when donors with an Alzheimer disease neuropathological diagnosis were excluded and were reduced but remained significant after adjusting for neuritic and diffuse amyloid plaques. Conclusions and relevance APOEε4 may confer increased risk for CTE-related neuropathological and clinical outcomes among older individuals with RHI exposure. Further work is required to validate these findings in an independent sample.

Key findings

Limited evidence suggests that the APOEε4 allele may confer risk for CTE, but previous studies were small with limited scope.
Results Of 364 consecutive brain donors (100% male; 53 [14.6%] self-identified as Black and 311 [85.4%] as White; median [IQR] age, 65 [47-77] years) 20 years or older, there were 294 individuals with CTE and 70 controls.
Among donors older than 65 years, APOEε4 status was significantly associated with CTE stage (odds ratio [OR], 2.34 [95% CI, 1.30-4.20]; false discovery rate [FDR]-corrected P = .01) and quantitative p-tau burden in the dorsolateral frontal lobe (β, 1.39 [95% CI, 0.83-1.94]; FDR-corrected P = 2.37 × 10-5).
Across 11 brain regions, significant associations were observed for semiquantitative p-tau burden in the frontal and parietal cortices, amygdala, and entorhinal cortex (OR range, 2.45-3.26).
Associations were significantly larger in the older half of the sample.

Why it matters

This study of brain donors found that among those older than 65, the APOEε4 allele was associated with chronic traumatic encephalopathy stage and p-tau burden, but there was no significant association for CTE status. It concerns CTE risk and pathology, not the treatment, cure, or prevention of Alzheimer's disease.

New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Disparities →

Study details

Study designcross-sectional
Participants294
Effect size14.6%; 85.4%
Evidence strengthLow

How this study scored 63/100

Published in a leading specialty journal, and it is a snapshot of people at one point in time. Scored zero for randomised / blinded because the record does not state it.

Component	Points	Why
Journal tier	9 / 10	Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (JAMA neurology)
Journal's citation record	2 / 4	JAMA Neurology: journal h-index 235 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29)
Study design	4 / 12	A snapshot of people at one point in time
Strength of evidence	1 / 5	Rated “low” in our summary
Peer-review validation	10 / 10	Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal.
How recent	3 / 5	2022 — within 6 year(s) of the newest study here
Sample size	2 / 4	294 participants
Effect reported	2 / 3	Effect reported as a number, without an interval or test
Studied in people	3 / 3	Studied in people (participant count stated)
Randomised / blinded	0 / 2	No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0)
Times cited	4 / 7	Cited 68 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10)
Citations per year	3 / 5	11.3 citations a year over 6 year(s) since 2022
Impact for its field and year	4 / 6	Cited 9.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI)
Cited by studies here	2 / 6	Cited by 4 other studies in this library
Still being cited	2 / 4	Cited 49 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex)
Senior author's track record	3 / 4	Last-listed author Jesse Mez: h-index 59 (OpenAlex, whole career)
Institution's track record	3 / 3	Harvard University: institution h-index 3,235 (OpenAlex)
Multi-centre collaboration	2 / 3	OpenAlex lists 8 institution(s) in 1 country
Indexed in PubMed	2 / 2	Indexed in PubMed (PMID 35759276)
Free to read	2 / 2	Free to read
Total	63 / 100	—

What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →

Read the original

Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).

Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris

Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record's author list ends in “et al.”, so not every author is named. Check the citation against the original before you use it.

APA 7th

Atherton, K., Han, X., Chung, J., Cherry, J. D., Baucom, Z., Saltiel, N., et al. (2022). Association of APOE Genotypes and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. JAMA neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1634

Vancouver

Atherton K, Han X, Chung J, Cherry JD, Baucom Z, Saltiel N, et al. Association of APOE Genotypes and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy. JAMA neurology. 2022. doi:10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1634. PMID: 35759276.

BibTeX

@article{atherton2022-35759276,
  author  = {Atherton, K. and Han, X. and Chung, J. and Cherry, J. D. and Baucom, Z. and Saltiel, N. and Nair, E. and Abdolmohammadi, B. and others},
  title   = {{Association of APOE Genotypes and Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy}},
  journal = {JAMA neurology},
  year    = {2022},
  doi     = {10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1634},
  pmid    = {35759276},
  url     = {https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2022.1634}
}

Studies this one cites

Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.

Later studies that cite this one

4 studies in the alzhub library list this one in their references.

Related studies in Disparities

Also tagged “amyloid-beta”

1,339 studies in the library carry the topic tag “amyloid-beta”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 1,339 tagged studies.

Similar studies

More on Disparities

See all studies in Disparities →