Neuropeptide Y polymorphisms and ischemic stroke in Chinese population.

BACKGROUND: Stroke is the second most common cause of death in developed countries and a major cause of adult disability and mortality worldwide. New data strongly suggest that neuropeptide Y (NPY) may be a candidate gene for ischemic stroke. METHODS: We investigated 450 ischemic stroke patients and 423 healthy controls matched for sex and age in a Han Chinese population. Three functional polymorphisms (-883TGins/del, -602G/T and -399 T/C) located in NPY gene promoter were genotyped using DNA sequencing methods. RESULTS: Of 3 NPY polymorphisms investigated in our study, the -399CC genotype (OR: 1.699, 95% CI: 1.124-2.567, P=0.011) and the -399C allele (OR: 1.254, 95% CI: 1.031-1.524, P=0.023) were more frequent among ischemic stroke patients than in controls, especially in the small vessel disease (SVD) subtype patients. The similar results were observed in multivariable logistic regression analysis. Haplotype analysis revealed that the -883ins/-399C haplotype was a risk marker for ischemic stroke (P=0.008). CONCLUSIONS: The C allele of -399 T/C polymorphism in the promoter regions of NPY is an independent risk factor for ischemic stroke, suggesting that NYP system may involve in the mechanisms of stroke pathology.