Endothelial nitric oxide synthase gene polymorphisms associated with susceptibility to high altitude pulmonary edema in Chinese railway construction workers at Qinghai-Tibet over 4 500 meters above sea level.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the polymorphisms of endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) gene are associated with the susceptibility to high altitude pulmonary edema (HAPE) in Chinese railway construction workers at Qinghai-Tibet where the altitude is over 4 500 m above sea level. METHODS: A case-control study was conducted including 149 HAPE patients in the construction workers and 160 healthy controls randomly recruited from their co-workers, matching the patients in ethnicity, age, sex, lifestyle, and working conditions. Three polymorphisms of eNOS gene, T-786C in promoter, 894G/T in exon 7, and 27bp variable number tandem repeat (VNTR) in intron 4, were genotyped using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and confirmed with DNA sequencing. RESULTS: The frequencies of 894T allele and heterozygous G/T of the 894G/T variant were significantly higher in HAPE patients group than in the control group (P=0.0028 and P=0.0047, respectively). However, the frequencies of the T-786C in promoter and the 27bp VNTR in intron 4 were not significantly different between the two groups. Haplotypic analysis revealed that the frequencies of two haplotypes (H3,T-T-b, b indicates 5 repeats of 27 bp VNTR; H6, C-G-a, a indicates 4 repeats of 27 bp VNTR) were significantly higher in HAPE patients (both Pü0.0001). On the contrary, the frequencies of H1 (T-G-b) and H2 (T-G-a) were lower in HAPE patients than in healthy controls (both Pü0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Two haplotypes (T-T-b and C-G-a) may be strongly associated with susceptibility to HAPE. Compared with the individual alleles of eNOS gene, the interaction of multiple genetic markers within a haplotype may be a major determinant for the susceptibility to HAPE.

Multiple risk factor clustering and risk of hypertension in the Mongolian ethnic population of China / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To evaluate whether the clustering of risk factors, both environmental and genetic, increases the risk of essential hypertension (EH) and the accumulation of risk factors influences the blood pressure level in normotensives.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>On the basis of a prevalence survey, 501 subjects of Mongolian ethnicity (243 hypertensives and 258 normotensives) who were not related to each other were selected to conduct a case-control study. All subjects were interviewed with questionnaires and their blood specimens were collected. Renin gene insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism, a new genetic marker, was genotyped with PCR and polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Overweight, alcohol consumption, and renin gene I/D polymorphism were significant risk factors of EH (P<0.05). The odds ratios (OR) for the number of risk factors were 2.39 (95%CI: 0.98-6.74) for one risk factor, 5.03 (95%CI: 2.06-14.18) for two, and 6.09 (95%CI: 1.85-22.38) for three respectively after adjusting for age and sex. In normotensives, age- and sex-adjusted mean blood pressures increased with more accumulation of risk factors. However, there were no significant differences among the different blood pressure levels according to the number of risk factors (P>0.05).</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>Overweight, alcohol consumption, and renin gene I/D polymorphism are risk factors of EH in the Mongolian ethnic population of China. The accumulation of the risk factors causes a sharp increase of the risk of EH.</p>

Associations between RAS Gene polymorphisms, environmental factors and hypertension in Mongolian people.

OBJECTIVE: To explore the association between RAS system genes (AGT, ACE and AT(1)R) polymorphisms, environmental factors and hypertension in Mongolian people. METHODS: On the basis of cross-sectional study, a case-control study with 299 hypertensives and 281 nomotensives was conducted, and the conditions of environmental factors were acquired by questionnaire. Serum lipid and insulin were detected by using biochemical experiments. Six single nucleotide polymorphisms of RAS system were genotyped by polymerase chain reaction/restriction fragment length polymorphism and polymerase chain reaction/single strand conformation polymorphism. RESULTS: Overweight or obesity, high serum TG and insulin resistance were risk factors of hypertension by single factor analysis. All the RAS genotype distributions were compatible with Hardy-Weinberg expectations. There were no significant differences to be found between cases and controls for genotype frequencies or allele frequencies of the six polymorphisms of RAS system, except in men group, OR value of men carried ACE ID+DD genotype vs. men carried II genotype was 2.20 (95%CI 1.21-4.02), and OR of people who carried both ACE ID (or DD) and AGT M235T MT (or MM) vs. people with both ACE ID (or DD) and AGT M235T TT was 1.59 (95%CI 1.06-2.38). CONCLUSIONS: Overweight or obesity, dyslipidemia and insulin resistance were risk factors of hypertension in Mongolian people. ACE gene ID+DD genotype was the risk factor of hypertension in men group. People who carried both ACE ID (or DD) and AGT M235T MT (or MM) had more risk to have hypertension.

Polymorphism of apolipoprotein E gene and natural longevity in the Xinjiang Uighur people: an association study / 中华医学遗传学杂志

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To explore the distribution of polymorphisms of apolipoprotein E(apoE) gene and its relation to natural longevity in the Xinjiang Uighur people.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Using polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism(PCR-RFLP), the authors obtained data from centenarians(n=42), 90-year-old people (n=102), 65-70-year-old people (n=70) and controls(n=53).</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The frequencies of apoE genotypes epsilon 3/4, epsilon 3/3 and epsilon 2/3 were 2.4%, 69.0% and 23.8% respectively in the centenarian group, and the frequencies of their epsilon 4, epsilon 3 and epsilon 2 alleles were 1.2%, 82.1% and 16.7%. The frequencies of genotype epsilon 3/4 and epsilon 4, epsilon 3 allele in the centenarian group were significantly lower than those in controls(P< 0.01), whereas the frequencies of genotype epsilon 2/3 and epsilon 2 allele in the centenarian group were significantly higher than those in controls(P< 0.01). Longevity was noted to be positively correlated with epsilon 2 and negatively correlated with epsilon 4.</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>This relationship reflects a genetic influence on differential survival and may point to pleiotropic age-dependent effects on longevity.</p>

Interaction and relationship between angiotensin converting enzyme gene and environmental factors predisposing to essential hypertension in Mongolian population of China / 生物医学与环境科学（英文）

<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To investigate the association of specific functional gene ACE (I/D) variants of the renin-angiotensin system with essential hypertension (EH) and interaction between ACE (I/D) gene and risk factors for EH in a genetically homogenous Mongolia rural population of China.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Individuals (n=1099) were recruited from general population of Kezuohouqi Banner in Inner Mongolian Autonomous Region.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>The association was found between ACE genotype DD plus ID and EH, with an interaction between ACE genotype DD plus ID and cigarette smoking in an additive model. Cigarette smoking index and ACE gene showed a low exposure-gene (LEG) effect on EH, with interaction indices from 7.10 to 1.16. Interaction between ACE genotype DD plus ID and alcohol drinking on EH appeared an additive model. Alcohol drinking index and ACE gene showed a low exposure-gene (LEG) effect on EH, with interaction indices from 1.66 to 1.09. BMI and ACE gene showed a low exposure-gene (LEG) effect on EH, with interaction indices from 6.15 to 2.49. Interactions between ACE genotype and WHR on EH showed a multiplicative model. In a short,there was an interaction between ACE gene and cigarette smoking, alcohol drinking and BMI on EH, especially in a low dose-exposure effect</p><p><b>CONCLUSION</b>It is important for individuals who carry ACE D allele gene to prevent EH, and furthermore, to prevent and control coronary heart disease, in a view of population-based prevention.</p>