The relationship between apolipoprotein E (apoE) genotype and cognitive performance was examined in 200 patients with probable Alzheimer's disease (AD). Differences between composite measures of verbal and nonverbal functioning were used to define asymmetric patterns of cognition. Patients who were homozygous for apoE ε4 demonstrated relatively worse nonverbal as compared to verbal cognitive ability. In contrast, participants who were heterozygous for apoE ε4 or who possessed no ε4 allele demonstrated relatively equivalent verbal and nonverbal cognitive abilities. Although age and dementia severity also contributed to these patterns, apoE genotype appears to have a significant unique contribution to cognitive performance in these individuals. The ε4 allele may thus be associated with a specific neurocognitive phenotype among patients with AD, with the overall pattern of cognitive asymmetry dependent upon ε4 dose. (JINS, 2003, 9, 751–759.)

This edited book has the stated purpose of filling the gap between books on normal memory and books dealing with abnormal memory by focusing specifically on memory in neurodegenerative conditions. The editor has done so by organizing the book into three main sections representative of different perspectives on memory. Each of these sections, biological, cognitive, and clinical, are summarized to coalesce the respective viewpoints into a cogent state of the art perspective for each section. The editor's intended audience includes neuropsychologists, neurologists, psychiatrists, and neuroscientists.

This study examined the utility of word recognition scores for estimating actual Verbal IQ scores obtained from 1–5 years earlier. Participants were 271 persons remaining normal and 24 initially normal persons who developed cognitive impairment over longitudinal follow-up. A previously published regression equation based on education and the American modification of the National Adult Reading Test (Nelson, 1982) was used to estimate Mayo Verbal IQ. In spite of correlating well with prior obtained scores (r = .7) the predicted score tended to overestimate the obtained Mayo Verbal IQ. A revised equation was developed in the normal sample, which improved accuracy of prediction. Among the 24 persons who developed cognitive impairment over a 5-year span, the revised predicted scores provided reasonable estimates of initial Mayo Verbal IQ. To aid in clinical interpretation, a table of the normal frequencies of predicted Mayo Verbal IQ minus contemporaneously obtained Mayo Verbal IQ is provided. (JINS, 1997, 3, 528–533.)