Shared genes and pathways in dementia: Insights from genome-wide association studies
Kyle J Loi, Noah Radtke, Chloe Kiriluk, Mohamed H Noureldein, Eva L Feldman, Kelly M Bakulski, Kevin S Chen. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association, 2025-11
Topic: Genetics and APOE
Dementia, a collective term for neurodegenerative disorders marked by cognitive decline, affects millions worldwide, and is expected to rise significantly in prevalence. Genome-wide association studies (GWASs), as highlighted in this review, have revolutionized our understanding of dementia by identifying contributing genetic loci and pathways, including for Alzheimer's disease, vascular dementia, frontotemporal lobar dementia, and Lewy body dementia. This review critically analyzes published findings to shed insight on shared genes and pathways, encompassing lipid metabolism, immune responses, lysosomal mechanisms, and ionic homeostasis, which underlie neurodegeneration in dementia. We discuss methodological advances, challenges posed by genetic heterogeneity and population diversity, and the utility of polygenic risk scores in disease prediction. Furthermore, the importance of integrating tissue-specific expression data and non-European ancestral study cohorts is emphasized. Finally, this review outlines the next steps for advancing dementia research through GWASs and genetic insights. HIGHLIGHTS: Genome-wide association studies (GWASs) provide insight into the complex genetic architecture underlying dementia. Synthesizing GWASs across dementia subtypes highlights shared mechanisms. Identifying shared pathways may guide therapeutic development. Limitations exist and future GWASs may benefit from use of diverse populations.
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APA 7th
Loi, K. J., Radtke, N., Kiriluk, C., Noureldein, M. H., Feldman, E. L., Bakulski, K. M., et al. (2025). Shared genes and pathways in dementia: Insights from genome-wide association studies. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association. https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70845
Vancouver
Loi KJ, Radtke N, Kiriluk C, Noureldein MH, Feldman EL, Bakulski KM, et al. Shared genes and pathways in dementia: Insights from genome-wide association studies. Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association. 2025. doi:10.1002/alz.70845. PMID: 41198606.
BibTeX
@article{loi2025-41198606,
author = {Loi, Kyle J and Radtke, Noah and Kiriluk, Chloe and Noureldein, Mohamed H and Feldman, Eva L and Bakulski, Kelly M and Chen, Kevin S},
title = {{Shared genes and pathways in dementia: Insights from genome-wide association studies}},
journal = {Alzheimer's \& dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association},
year = {2025},
doi = {10.1002/alz.70845},
pmid = {41198606},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1002/alz.70845}
}
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 names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Dementia, a collective term for neurodegenerative disorders marked by cognitive decline, affects millions worldwide, and is expected to rise significantly in prevalence.
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Study details
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 46/100
Published in a leading specialty journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomised / blinded because the record does not state it. We have no data on journal's citation record, times cited, citations per year, impact for its field and year, cited by studies here, still being cited, senior author's track record, institution's track record, multi-centre collaboration and free to read, so those were left out: it earned 26 of the 56 points we could judge it on, which is 46 out of 100.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 9 / 10 | Tier 2 — leading specialty journal (Alzheimer's & dementia : the journal of the Alzheimer's Association) |
| Journal's citation record | — / 4 | No journal record from OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | No study design recorded — scores zero, not guessed (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| 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 | 4 / 5 | 2025 — within 3 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomised / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomisation or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | — / 7 | No citation count (not found in OpenAlex) — left out of this score |
| Citations per year | — / 5 | No citation count or no year — left out of this score |
| Impact for its field and year | — / 6 | No field-weighted citation impact (OpenAlex has none yet) — left out of this score |
| Cited by studies here | — / 6 | Not yet checked against this library's citation graph — left out of this score |
| Still being cited | — / 4 | No yearly citation counts — left out of this score |
| Senior author's track record | — / 4 | Senior author's record not available — left out of this score |
| Institution's track record | — / 3 | No institution listed in OpenAlex — left out of this score |
| Multi-centre collaboration | — / 3 | Institutions not listed — left out of this score |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 41198606) |
| Free to read | — / 2 | Access not recorded — left out of this score |
| Points | 26 / 56 | Scored on 10 of 20 parts. We have no data for the rest, so they are left out: 26 of the 56 points we could judge it on is 46 out of 100. |
| Total | 46 / 100 | — |
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