The <i>eNOS</i> Gene Polymorphism Does Not Have a Major Impact on Lipid Parameters and Premature Coronary Artery Disease in Slovene Men (Caucasians)

Milutinović, Aleksandra; Hruškovičova, H.

doi:10.14712/fb2005051020047

Fol. Biol. 2005, 51, 47-49

https://doi.org/10.14712/fb2005051020047

The eNOS Gene Polymorphism Does Not Have a Major Impact on Lipid Parameters and Premature Coronary Artery Disease in Slovene Men (Caucasians)

Aleksandra Milutinović¹, H. Hruškovičova^1,2

¹Institute of Histology and Embryology, Medical Faculty, University of Ljubljana, Slovenia
²Division of Medical Genetics, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Medical Centre Ljubljana, Slovenia

Received December 2004
Accepted February 2005

eNOS affects the NO level in the blood vessel wall, and therefore eNOS might be considered as a candidate gene for CAD. In this cross-sectional case-control association study we tested the hypothesis whether the eNOS 4a/b gene polymorphism is a genetic marker for premature CAD in Slovene men. The eNOS 4a/b gene polymorphism was tested in 403 Slovene men: 215 cases with premature CAD and 188 subjects with no history of CAD. The frequency of 4a/b genotypes did not differ between patients and controls: in CAD patients the frequencies of the 4aa, 4ab, or 4bb genotype were 5.0%, 27.9%, or 67.1%, respectively, and in controls the genotype frequencies were 5.3%, 30.9%, or 63.8%, respectively. In this study the aa genotype of the eNOS 4a/b polymorphism was not associated with premature CAD (OR = 1, 95% CI 0.4–2.3, P = 0.9). Moreover, there were no differences in lipid parameters (total cholesterol, low-density lipoprotein (LDL) cholesterol, high-density lipoprotein (HDL) cholesterol and triglycerides) between the subjects with the aa genotype and the subjects with the ab or bb genotype. In conclusion, we failed to demonstrate that the eNOS 4a/b gene polymorphism was a genetic marker for premature CAD in Slovene men.