Albert Hofman's Faculty Website

Home

677 Huntington Avenue
Kresge Building 9th Floor
Boston, MA 02155
Phone: 617.432.6477

For scheduling requests please contact the Executive Assistant to the Chair, Coppelia Liebenthal cliebent@hsph.harvard.edu

Biographical Information

Albert Hofman, MD, PhD is the Chair of the Department of Epidemiology and the Stephen B. Kay Family Professor of Public Health and Clinical Epidemiology at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts (USA). Dr. Hofman was the chairman of the department of Epidemiology of the Erasmus Medical Center/Erasmus University Rotterdam, The Netherlands, from 1988 until 2016. He has been science director of the graduate school Netherlands Institute for Health sciences (Nihes) since its start in 1990 until 2015.

Research

Dr. Hofman is the initiator and principal investigator of two population based, prospective cohort studies in the city of Rotterdam, the Netherlands: the Rotterdam Study and the Generation R study. Data-collection for these studies started in 1990 and 2002, respectively. These cohort studies have in common that they target multiple common diseases, have a very extensive and state-of-the-art assessment of the putative determinants of these diseases, and employ as much as possible new technologies to be applied in the setting of epidemiologic population studies.

The study of a multiple outcomes, in particular neurological, cardiovascular and endocrine diseases, has enabled the investigation of the interrelations of those diseases, and thereby of the co-morbidity and co-etiology of various diseases with a large population burden. This has made the findings in these studies generally useful for public health purposes as well as for clinical medicine.

The new technologies for epidemiologic studies include the genome-wide assessment and large-scale imaging of whole cohorts. The Rotterdam Study was one of the five founding cohorts of the very productive CHARGE consortium which has performed many successful genome-wide association studies that found a large number of genes involved in common diseases. The Rotterdam Study also pioneered new population imaging modalities, including magnetic resonance imaging since 1995. More recently the Generation R study has an MRI facility and is conducting one of the first large-scale populations based brain-imaging studies in children.

Other Affiliations

Professor, Erasmus University Medical School, The Netherlands

Publications

  1. van der LeeSJ, Wolters FJ, Ikram MK, Hofman A, Ikram MA, Amin N, van Duijn CM. The effect of APOE and other common genetic variants on the onset of Alzheimer’s disease and dementia: a community-based cohort study. Lancet Neurol. 2018 May;17(5):434-444. doi: 10.1016/S1474-4422(18)30053-X.
    Epub 2018 Mar 16. Erratum in: Lancet Neurol. 2018 Apr 25.
  2. Chibnik LB, Wolters FJ, Bäckman K, Beiser A, Berr C, Bis JC, Boerwinkle E, Bos D, Brayne C, Dartigues JF, Darweesh SKL, Debette S, Davis-Plourde KL, Dufouil C, Fornage M, Grasset L, Gudnason V, Hadjichrysanthou C, Helmer C, Ikram MA, Ikram MK, Kern S, Kuller LH, Launer L, Lopez OL, Matthews F, Meirelles O, Mosley T, Ower A, Psaty BM, Satizabal CL, Seshadri S, Skoog I, Stephan BCM, Tzourio C, Waziry R, Wong MM, Zettergren A, Hofman A. Trends in the incidence of dementia: design and methods in the Alzheimer Cohorts Consortium. Eur J Epidemiol. 2017 Oct; 32(10):931-938. doi: 10.1007/s10654-017-0320-5. Epub 2017 Oct 23.
  3. Wolters FJ, Zonneveld HI, Hofman A, van der Lugt A, Koudstaal PJ, Vernooij MW, Ikram MA; Heart-Brain Connection Collaborative Research Group. Cerebral Perfusion and the Risk of Dementia: A Population-Based Study. Circulation. 2017 Aug 22;136(8):719-728. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.117.027448. Epub 2017 Jun 6.
  4. Zonneveld HI, Ikram MA, Hofman A, Niessen WJ, van der Lugt A, Krestin GP, Franco OH, Vernooij MW. N-Terminal Pro-B-Type Natriuretic Peptide and Subclinical Brain Damage in the General Population. Radiology. 2017 Apr; 283(1):205-214. doi: 10.1148/radiol.2016160548. Epub 2016 Dec 7.
  5. DarweeshSK, Verlinden VJ, Stricker BH, Hofman A, Koudstaal PJ, Ikram MA. Trajectories of prediagnostic functioning in Parkinson’s disease. Brain. 2017 Feb;140(2):429-441. doi: 10.1093/brain/aww291. Epub 2017 Jan 12.
  6. Kavousi M, Desai CS, Ayers C, Blumenthal RS, Budoff MJ, Mahabadi AA, Ikram MA, van der Lugt A, Hofman A, Erbel R, Khera A, Geisel MH, Jöckel KH, Lehmann N, Hoffmann U, O’Donnell CJ, Massaro JM, Liu K, Möhlenkamp S, Ning H, Franco OH, Greenland P. Prevalence and Prognostic Implications of Coronary Artery Calcification in Low-Risk Women: A Meta-analysis. JAMA.2016 Nov 22; 316(20):2126-2134. doi: 10.1001/jama.2016.17020.
  7. Chaker L, Wolters FJ, Bos D, Korevaar TI, Hofman A, van der Lugt A, Koudstaal PJ, Franco OH, Dehghan A, Vernooij MW, Peeters RP, Ikram MA. Thyroid function and the risk of dementia: The Rotterdam Study. Neurology.2016 Oct 18; 87(16):1688-1695. Epub 2016 Sep 16.
  8. Adams HH, Swanson SA, Hofman A, Ikram MA. Amyloid-β transmission or
    unexamined bias? 2016 Sep 15; 537(7620):E7-9. doi: 10.1038/nature19086. No abstract available.
  9. Akoudad S, Wolters FJ, Viswanathan A, de Bruijn RF, van der Lugt A, Hofman A, Koudstaal PJ, Ikram MA, Vernooij MW. Association of Cerebral Microbleeds With Cognitive Decline and Dementia. JAMA Neurol.2016 Aug 1;73(8):934-43. doi: 10.1001/jamaneurol.2016.1017.
  10. Portegies ML, Wolters FJ, Hofman A, Ikram MK, Koudstaal PJ, Ikram MA. Prestroke Vascular Pathology and the Risk of Recurrent Stroke and Poststroke Dementia. Stroke.2016 Aug;47(8):2119-22. doi: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.116.014094. Epub 2016 Jul 14.
  11. Mirza SS, Wolters FJ, Swanson SA, Koudstaal PJ, Hofman A, Tiemeier H, Ikram MA. 10-year trajectories of depressive symptoms and risk of dementia: a population-based study. Lancet Psychiatry. 2016 Jul;3(7):628-35. doi: 10.1016/S2215-0366(16)00097-3. Epub 2016 Apr 29.
  12. Darweesh SK, Koudstaal PJ, Stricker BH, Hofman A, Ikram MA. Trends in the Incidence of Parkinson Disease in the General Population: The Rotterdam Study. Am J Epidemiol. 2016 Jun 1;183(11):1018-26. doi: 10.1093/aje/kwv271. Epub 2016 Apr 29.
  13. PortegiesML, Mirza SS, Verlinden VJ, Hofman A, Koudstaal PJ, Swanson SA, Ikram MA. Mid- to Late-Life Trajectories of Blood Pressure and the Risk of Stroke: The Rotterdam Study. 2016 Jun;67(6):1126-32. doi:10.1161/HYPERTENSIONAHA.116.07098.
  14. OkbayA, Beauchamp JP, Fontana MA, et al. Genome-wide association study identifies 74 loci associated with educational attainment. 2016 May 26;533(7604):539-42. doi: 10.1038/nature17671. Epub 2016 May 11.
  15. Kavousi M, Leening MJ, Nanchen D, Greenland P, Graham IM, Steyerberg EW, Ikram MA, Stricker BH, Hofman A, Franco OH. Comparison of application of the ACC/AHA Guidelines, Adult Treatment Panel III Guidelines, and European Society of Cardiology Guidelines for cardiovascular disease prevention in a European cohort. JAMA. 2014;311(14):1416-23.
  16. van Dijk FS, Zillikens MC, Micha D, Riessland M, Marcelis CL, de Die-Smulders CE, Milbradt J, Franken AA, Harsevoort AJ, Lichtenbelt KD, Pruijs HE, Rubio-Gozalbo ME, Zwertbroek R, Moutaouakil Y, Egthuijsen J, Hammerschmidt M, Bijman R, Semeins CM, Bakker AD, Everts V, Klein-Nulend J, Campos-Obando N, Hofman A, te Meerman GJ, Verkerk AJ, Uitterlinden AG, Maugeri A, Sistermans EA, Waisfisz Q, Meijers-Heijboer H, Wirth B, Simon ME, Pals G. PLS3 mutations in X-linked osteoporosis with fractures. N Engl J Med. 2013 Oct 17;369(16):1529-36.
  17. Jonsson T, Stefansson H, Ph DS, Jonsdottir I, Jonsson PV, Snaedal J, Bjornsson S, Huttenlocher J, Levey AI, Lah JJ, Rujescu D, Hampel H, Giegling I, Andreassen OA, Engedal K, Ulstein I, Djurovic S, Ibrahim-Verbaas C, Hofman A, Ikram MA, van Duijn CM, Thorsteinsdottir U, Kong A, Stefansson K. Variant of TREM2 Associated with the Risk of Alzheimer’s Disease. N Engl J Med. 2013;368:107-116.
  18. Rietveld CA, Medland SE, Derringer J, Yang J, Esko T, Martin NW, Westra HJ, Shakhbazov K, Abdellaoui A, Agrawal A, Albrecht E, Alizadeh BZ, Amin N, Barnard J, Baumeister SE, Benke KS, Bielak LF, Boatman JA, Boyle PA, Davies G, de Leeuw C, Eklund N, Evans DS, Ferhmann R, Fischer K, Gieger C, Gjessing HK, Hägg S, Harris JR, Hayward C, Holzapfel C, Ibrahim-Verbaas CA, Ingelsson E, Jacobsson B, Joshi PK, Jugessur A, Kaakinen M, Kanoni S, Karjalainen J, Kolcic I, Kristiansson K, Kutalik Z, Lahti J, Lee SH, Lin P, Lind PA, Liu Y, Lohman K, Loitfelder M, McMahon G, Vidal PM, Meirelles O, Milani L, Myhre R, Nuotio ML, Oldmeadow CJ, Petrovic KE, Peyrot WJ, Polasek O, Quaye L, Reinmaa E, Rice JP, Rizzi TS, Schmidt H, Schmidt R, Smith AV, Smith JA, Tanaka T, Terracciano A, van der Loos MJ, Vitart V, Völzke H, Wellmann J, Yu L, Zhao W, Allik J, Attia JR, Bandinelli S, Bastardot F, Beauchamp J, Bennett DA, Berger K, Bierut LJ, Boomsma DI, Bültmann U, Campbell H, Chabris CF, Cherkas L, Chung MK, Cucca F, de Andrade M, De Jager PL, De Neve JE, Deary IJ, Dedoussis GV, Deloukas P, Dimitriou M, Eiríksdóttir G, Elderson MF, Eriksson JG, Evans DM, Faul JD, Ferrucci L, Garcia ME, Grönberg H, Guðnason V, Hall P, Harris JM, Harris TB, Hastie ND, Heath AC, Hernandez DG, Hoffmann W, Hofman A, Holle R, Holliday EG, Hottenga JJ, Iacono WG, Illig T, Järvelin MR, Kähönen M, Kaprio J, Kirkpatrick RM, Kowgier M, Latvala A, Launer LJ, Lawlor DA, Lehtimäki T, Li J, Lichtenstein P, Lichtner P, Liewald DC, Madden PA, Magnusson PK, Mäkinen TE, Masala M, McGue M, Metspalu A, Mielck A, Miller MB, Montgomery GW, Mukherjee S, Nyholt DR, Oostra BA, Palmer LJ, Palotie A, Penninx BW, Perola M, Peyser PA, Preisig M, Räikkönen K, Raitakari OT, Realo A, Ring SM, Ripatti S, Rivadeneira F, Rudan I, Rustichini A, Salomaa V, Sarin AP, Schlessinger D, Scott RJ, Snieder H, St Pourcain B, Starr JM, Sul JH, Surakka I, Svento R, Teumer A; LifeLines Cohort Study, Tiemeier H, van Rooij FJ, Van Wagoner DR, Vartiainen E, Viikari J, Vollenweider P, Vonk JM, Waeber G, Weir DR, Wichmann HE, Widen E, Willemsen G, Wilson JF, Wright AF, Conley D, Davey-Smith G, Franke L, Groenen PJ, Hofman A, Johannesson M, Kardia SL, Krueger RF, Laibson D, Martin NG, Meyer MN, Posthuma D, Thurik AR, Timpson NJ, Uitterlinden AG, van Duijn CM, Visscher PM, Benjamin DJ, Cesarini D, Koellinger PD. GWAS of 126,559 individuals identifies genetic variants associated with educational attainment. Science. 2013 Jun 21;340(6139):1467-71.
  19. Emerging Risk Factors C, Kaptoge S, Di Angelantonio E, Pennells L, Wood AM, White IR, Gao P, Walker M, Thompson A, Sarwar N, Caslake M, Butterworth AS, Amouyel P, Assmann G, Bakker SJ, Barr EL, Barrett-Connor E, Benjamin EJ, Bjorkelund C, Brenner H, Brunner E, Clarke R, Cooper JA, Cremer P, Cushman M, Dagenais GR, D’Agostino RB, Sr., Dankner R, Davey-Smith G, Deeg D, Dekker JM, Engstrom G, Folsom AR, Fowkes FG, Gallacher J, Gaziano JM, Giampaoli S, Gillum RF, Hofman A, Howard BV, Ingelsson E, Iso H, Jorgensen T, Kiechl S, Kitamura A, Kiyohara Y, Koenig W, Kromhout D, Kuller LH, Lawlor DA, Meade TW, Nissinen A, Nordestgaard BG, Onat A, Panagiotakos DB, Psaty BM, Rodriguez B, Rosengren A, Salomaa V, Kauhanen J, Salonen JT, Shaffer JA, Shea S, Ford I, Stehouwer CD, Strandberg TE, Tipping RW, Tosetto A, Wassertheil-Smoller S, Wennberg P, Westendorp RG, Whincup PH, Wilhelmsen L, Woodward M, Lowe GD, Wareham NJ, Khaw KT, Sattar N, Packard CJ, Gudnason V, Ridker PM, Pepys MB, Thompson SG, Danesh J. C-reactive protein, fibrinogen, and cardiovascular disease prediction. N Engl J Med. 2012 Oct 4;367(14):1310-20.
  20. Den Ruijter HM, Peters SA, Anderson TJ, Britton AR, Dekker JM, Eijkemans MJ, Engstrom G, Evans GW, de Graaf J, Grobbee DE, Hedblad B, Hofman A, Holewijn S, Ikeda A, Kavousi M, Kitagawa K, Kitamura A, Koffijberg H, Lonn EM, Lorenz MW, Mathiesen EB, Nijpels G, Okazaki S, O’Leary DH, Polak JF, Price JF, Robertson C, Rembold CM, Rosvall M, Rundek T, Salonen JT, Sitzer M, Stehouwer CD, Witteman JC, Moons KG, Bots ML. Common carotid intima- media thickness measurements in cardiovascular risk prediction: a meta-analysis. JAMA. 2012 Aug 22;308(8):796-803.
  21. Hofman A, van Duijn CM, Franco OH, Ikram MA, Janssen HL, Klaver CC, Kuipers EJ, Nijsten TE, Stricker BH, Tiemeier H, Uitterlinden AG, Vernooij MW, Witteman JC. The Rotterdam Study: 2012 objectives and design update. Eur J Epidemiol. 2011; Aug;26(8):657-686.
  22. Schrijvers EM, Koudstaal PJ, Hofman A, Breteler MM. Plasma clusterin and the risk of Alzheimer disease. JAMA. 2011 Apr 6;305(13):1322-6.
  23. Solouki AM, Verhoeven VJ, van Duijn CM, Verkerk AJ, Ikram MK, Hysi PG, Despriet DD, van Koolwijk LM, Ho L, Ramdas WD, Czudowska M, Kuijpers RW, Amin N, Struchalin M, Aulchenko YS, van Rij G, Riemslag FC, Young TL, Mackey DA, Spector TD, Gorgels TG, Willemse-Assink JJ, Isaacs A, Kramer R, Swagemakers SM, Bergen AA, van Oosterhout AA, Oostra BA, Rivadeneira F, Uitterlinden AG, Hofman A, de Jong PT, Hammond CJ, Vingerling JR, Klaver CC. A genome-wide association study identifies a susceptibility locus for refractive errors and myopia at 15q14. Nat Genet. 2010 Oct;42(10):897-901.
  24. Lp PLASC, Thompson A, Gao P, Orfei L, Watson S, Di Angelantonio E, Kaptoge S, Ballantyne C, Cannon CP, Criqui M, Cushman M, Hofman A, Packard C, Thompson SG, Collins R, Danesh J. Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) and risk of coronary disease, stroke, and mortality: collaborative analysis of 32 prospective studies. 2010 May 1;375(9725):1536-44.
  25. Ikram MA, Seshadri S, Bis JC, Fornage M, DeStefano AL, Aulchenko YS, Debette S, Lumley T, Folsom AR, van den Herik EG, Bos MJ, Beiser A, Cushman M, Launer LJ, Shahar E, Struchalin M, Du Y, Glazer NL, Rosamond WD, Rivadeneira F, Kelly-Hayes M, Lopez OL, Coresh J, Hofman A, DeCarli C, Heckbert SR, Koudstaal PJ, Yang Q, Smith NL, Kase CS, Rice K, Haritunians T, Roks G, de Kort PL, Taylor KD, de Lau LM, Oostra BA, Uitterlinden AG, Rotter JI, Boerwinkle E, Psaty BM, Mosley TH, van Duijn CM, Breteler MM, Longstreth WT Jr, Wolf PA. Genomewide association studies of stroke. N Engl J Med. 2009 Apr 23;360(17):1718-28.
  26. Newton-Cheh C, Eijgelsheim M, Rice KM, de Bakker PI, Yin X, Estrada K, Bis JC, Marciante K, Rivadeneira F, Noseworthy PA, Sotoodehnia N, Smith NL, Rotter JI, Kors JA, Witteman JC, Hofman A, Heckbert SR, O’Donnell CJ, Uitterlinden AG, Psaty BM, Lumley T, Larson MG, Stricker BH. Common variants at ten loci influence QT interval duration in the QTGEN Study. Nat Genet. 2009 Apr;41(4):399-406.
  27. Dehghan A, Köttgen A, Yang Q, Hwang SJ, Kao WL, Rivadeneira F, Boerwinkle E, Levy D, Hofman A, Astor BC, Benjamin EJ, van Duijn CM, Witteman JC, Coresh J, Fox CS. Association of three genetic loci with uric acid concentration and risk of gout: a genome-wide association study. Lancet. 2008 Dec 6;372(9654):1953-61.
  28. Vernooij MW, Ikram MA, Tanghe HL, Vincent AJ, Hofman A, Krestin GP, Niessen WJ, Breteler MM, van der Lugt A. Incidental findings on brain MRI in the general population. N Engl J Med. 2007 Nov 1;357(18):1821-8.
  29. Meurs JB van, Dhonukshe-Rutten RA, Pluijm SM, Klift M van der, Jonge R de, Lindemans J, Groot LC de, Hofman A, Witteman JC, Leeuwen JP van, Breteler MM, Lips P, Pols HA, Uitterlinden AG. Homocysteine levels and the risk of osteoporotic fracture. N Engl J Med 2004;350:2033-41.
  30. Vermeer SE, Prins ND, den Heijer T, Hofman A, Koudstaal PJ, Breteler MMB. Silent brain infarcts and the risk of dementia and cognitive decline. N Engl J Med. 2003;348:1215-22.
  31. Veld BA in ‘t, Ruitenberg A, Hofman A, Launer LJ, Duijn CM van, Stijnen T, Breteler MMB, Stricker BHC. Nonsteroidal antiinflammatory drugs and the risk of Alzheimer’s disease. N Engl J Med. 2001;345:1515-21.
  32. Uitterlinden AG, Burger H, Huang Q, Yue F, McGuigan FEA, Grant SFA, Hofman A, Leeuwen JPTM van, Pols HAP, Ralston SH. Relation of alleles of the collagen type 11 gene to bone density and the risk of osteoporotic fractures in postmenopausal women.
    N Engl J Med. 1998;338:1016-21.
  33. Hofman A, Ott A, Breteler MMB, Bots ML, Slooter AJC, Harskamp F van, Duijn CM van, Broeckhoven C van, Grobbee DE. Atherosclerosis, apolipoprotein and prevalence of dementia and Alzheimer’s disease. The Rotterdam Study. Lancet. 1997;349:151-4.
  34. Will RG, Ironside JW, Zeidler M, Cousens SN, Estibeiro K, Alprovitch A, Poser S, Pocchari M, Hofman A, Smith PG. A new variant of Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease in the UK. Lancet. 1996;347:921-5.
  35. Duijn CM van, Knijff P de, Cruts M, Wehnert A, Havekes LM, Hofman A, Broeckhoven C van. Apolipoprotein E4 allele in a population based study of early onset Alzheimer’s disease. Nat Genet. 1994;7:74-9.
  36. Hendriks L, Duijn CM van, Cras P, Cruts M, Hul W van, Harskamp van F, Warren A, Innis Mc MG, Antonara SE, Martin JJ, Hofman A, Broeckhoven C van. Presenile-dementia and cerebral-hemorrhage linked to a mutation at codon-692 of the beta-amyloid precursor protein gene. Nat Genet. 1992;
    1:218-21.
  37. Hooft IMS van,Grobbee DE,Derkx FHM, Leeuw PW de,Schalekamp MADH,Hofman A. Renal hemodynamics and the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system in the early phase of primary hypertension. N Engl J Med. 1991;324:1305-11.
  38. Walter HJ, Hofman A, Vaughan RD, Wynder E. Modification of risk factors for coronary heart disease. Five-year results of a school-based intervention trial. N Engl J Med. 1988;318:1093-100.
  39. Hofman A, Hazebroek A, Valkenburg HA. A randomized trial of sodium intake and blood pressure in newborn infants. JAMA. 1983;250:370-3.