Association of ApoE polymorphisms with prevalent hypertension in 1406 older adults: the Bambuí Health Aging Study (BHAS)

A.K Fuzikawa,E.H Moriguchi,M.F Lima-Costa,M Taufer,S.V Peixoto

doi:10.1590/s0100-879x2008000200002

Abstract

Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) polymorphism influences lipid metabolism, but its association with arterial hypertension is controversial. The objective of this study was to examine the association between ApoE polymorphism and prevalent hypertension in a large unselected population of older adults. Participants from the baseline of the Bambuí Health Aging Study whose ApoE genes had been genotyped were selected for this study (N = 1406, aged 60-95 years). These subjects represented 80.7% of the total elderly residents in Bambuí city, MG, Brazil. Hypertension was defined as a systolic blood pressure > or =140 mmHg and/or a diastolic blood pressure > or =90 mmHg, or the use of anti-hypertensive medication. The exposure variable was the ApoE genotype as follows: epsilon3 carriers, epsilon3epsilon3; epsilon2 carriers, epsilon2epsilon2 or epsilon2epsilon3, and epsilon4 carriers, epsilon3epsilon4 or epsilon4epsilon4. Potential confounding variables were age, gender, traditional cardiovascular risk factors, uric acid, and creatinine levels. The prevalence of hypertension was 61.3%. Compared with the epsilon3 homozygotes, neither the epsilon2 nor the epsilon4 carrier status was associated with hypertension (adjusted prevalence ratios = 0.94, 95%CI = 0.83-1.07 and 0.98, 0.89-1.07, respectively). On the other hand, the epsilon2 allele carriers had lower LDL cholesterol levels (P < 0.001) and the epsilon4 carriers had higher LDL cholesterol levels (P = 0.036). This study provides epidemiologic evidence that the ApoE genotype is not associated with prevalent hypertension in old age.

Highlights

There has been an increasing interest in apolipoprotein E (ApoE) polymorphisms as predictors of hypertension
ApoE plays a fundamental role in lipid metabolism, participating in the clearance of chylomicron remmants and very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) by serving as a ligand for low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors [1]
Prevalent hypertension was not associated with ApoE polymorphisms in a large sample of Brazilian older adults

Summary

Introduction

There has been an increasing interest in apolipoprotein E (ApoE) polymorphisms as predictors of hypertension. ApoE plays a fundamental role in lipid metabolism, participating in the clearance of chylomicron remmants and very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL) by serving as a ligand for low-density lipoprotein (LDL) receptors [1]. It is an important determinant of intestinal cholesterol absorption [2] and plasma lipid levels [3]. The ε4 allele has consistently been linked to increases in LDL cholesterol levels [6,7]. The ε2 allele has been reported to be linked with higher triglyceride levels in some [6,8], but not all studies [7]

Objectives

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Results

Conclusion