Among both APOE ε4 carriers and non-carriers in the MCI and Dementia groups, CSF ApoA1 levels correlated positively with CSF ICAM1 and VCAM1 levels [correlation range 0.42 to 0.59, all p < 0.001], while plasma ApoA1 levels correlated negatively with CSF ICAM1 (− 0.20, p = 0.04) and VCAM1 levels (− 0.32. The gene discussed is VCAM1; the disease is dementia.