Genetic variant tied to doubled dementia risk for older men

From the article:

Researchers focused on 12,174 Australians of European ancestry over age 70, and looked for variants in the HFE gene. The gene is critical to regulating the body’s iron levels, and variants are common among people of European descent.

Those who carry two copies of the p.C282Y variant in the HFE gene can develop hemochromatosis, a condition that causes iron overload in the body, and resulting conditions such as liver cirrhosis, liver cancer, frailty, arthritis and dementia.

…

One in 3 people carry a gene variant called H63D, and 1 in 36 carry two copies, John Olynyk, a professor at the Curtin Medical Research Institute in Perth, Australia, says in a news release about the new study.

…

The study builds on earlier evidence that variants in the HFE gene may play a role in dementia. While the p.C282Y variant causes dementia through the development of iron overload, the p.H63D variant in the same HFE gene may cause brain inflammation and damage leading to dementia in the absence of overt iron overload, the researchers write. The reason behind the difference in dementia risk between men and women was not clear.

Apparently these genes have been known for a while. Here’s the Mayo clinic’s article on hemochromatosis, which mentions them.