Dec 26, 2006 -- Contact: Karen Gardner EMBARGOED UNTIL (718) 430-3101 Monday, December 25, 2006 kgardner@aecom.yu.edu @ 4 p.m. Gene Tied to Longevity Also Preserves Ability to Think Clearly and Could Help Delay Onset of Alzheimer’s Disease December 25, 2006 (Bronx, NY) — A gene variant linked to living a very long life—to 90 and beyond—also serves to help very old people think clearly and retain their memories, according to new research by scientists at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine of Yeshiva University. Their findings are published in the December 26, 2006 issue of Neurology. Led by Dr. Nir Barzilai, director of the Institute for Aging Research at Einstein, the researchers examined 158 people of Ashkenazi (Eastern European) Jewish descent who were 95 or older. Compared with elderly subjects lacking the gene variant, those who possessed it were twice as likely to have good brain function based on a standard test of cognitive function. Later the researchers validated their findings independently in a younger group of 124 Ashkenazi Jews between the ages of 75 and 85 who were enrolled in the Einstein Aging Study led by Dr. Richard Lipton. Within this group, those who did not develop dementia at follow up were five times more likely to have the favorable genotype than those who developed dementia. Dr. Barzilai and his colleagues had previously shown that this gene variant helps people live exceptionally long lives and apparently can be passed from one generation to the next. Known as CETP VV, Other Einstein scientists involved in the study were Dr. Gil Atzmon, Dr. Carol Derby, Dr. Jonathan Bauman and Dr. Richard Lipton. The study was supported by grants from the Einstein Aging Study, the Paul