Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) is of great interest due to its role as a cholesterol/lipid transporter in the central nervous system (CNS) and as the most influential genetic risk factor for Alzheimer disease (AD). Work over the last four decades has given us important insights into the structure of ApoE and how this might impact the neuropathology and pathogenesis of AD. In this review, we highlight the history and progress in the structural and molecular understanding of ApoE and discuss how these studies on ApoE have illuminated the physiology of ApoE, receptor binding, and interaction with amyloid-β (Aβ). We also identify future areas of study needed to advance our understanding of how ApoE influences neurodegeneration.

载脂蛋白 E (ApoE) 因其在中枢神经系统 (CNS) 中作为胆固醇/脂质转运蛋白的作用以及作为阿尔茨海默病 (AD) 最有影响的遗传风险因素而备受关注。过去四年的工作让我们对 ApoE 的结构以及它如何影响 AD 的神经病理学和发病机制有了重要的了解。在这篇综述中，我们重点介绍了 ApoE 的结构和分子理解的历史和进展，并讨论了这些关于 ApoE 的研究如何阐明 ApoE 的生理学、受体结合以及与淀粉样蛋白-β (Aβ) 的相互作用。我们还确定了进一步了解 ApoE 如何影响神经退行性变所需的未来研究领域。