Apoe genotype knowledge and its impact on cognitive beliefs and performance
Sarah J Barber1,2, Meenakshi Menon1, Katherine J Shoemaker1
1Department of Psychology, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Summary
Knowing your APOE ɛ4 carrier status for Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk can lower confidence in cognitive control. Awareness did not significantly impact objective cognition but showed transient effects on working memory in carriers.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Genetics
- Psychology
Background:
- Genetic testing for Alzheimer's disease (AD) risk, particularly APOE ɛ4 status, is becoming more accessible.
- Understanding the psychological impact of genetic risk disclosure on cognitive perception and performance is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how awareness of being an APOE ɛ4 carrier affects subjective and objective cognitive functioning in cognitively unimpaired older adults.
- To explore the psychological responses to genetic risk information for late-onset AD.
Main Methods:
- Study included 195 cognitively unimpaired older adults (63-79 years) from the Alzheimer's Prevention Initiative's GeneMatch program.
- Participants were categorized by APOE ɛ4 carrier status and awareness of their genotype.
- Subjective cognition (memory control, attention control, memory anxiety) and objective cognition (memory tasks) were assessed.
Main Results:
- APOE ɛ4 carriers aware of their genotype reported lower confidence in controlling cognitive functioning and attention.
- Non-carriers aware of their genotype showed reduced concern about developing AD, indicating potential reassurance.
- Awareness of genotype did not consistently affect objective cognition, though exploratory analyses suggested transient working memory performance changes in ɛ4 carriers.
Conclusions:
- Awareness of heightened genetic risk for AD can diminish older adults' perceived cognitive control.
- Disclosure of genetic risk information may have psychological benefits for non-carriers.
- Transient adverse effects on working memory performance may occur in APOE ɛ4 carriers aware of their status under specific testing conditions.
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