Exposure to Air Pollutants and Myocardial Infarction Incidence: A UK Biobank Study Exploring Gene–Environment Interaction

BACKGROUND: Unraveling gene-environment interaction can provide a novel insight into early disease prevention. Nevertheless, current understanding of the interplay between genetic predisposition and air pollution in relation to myocardial infarction (MI) risk remains limited. Furthermore, the potential long-term influence of air pollutants on MI incidence risk warrants more conclusive evidence in a community population. OBJECTIVE: We investigated interactions between genetic predisposition and exposure to air pollutants on MI incidence. METHODS: ) from the UK Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (2006-2021). The Cox proportional hazards model was employed to explore MI incidence after chronic air pollutants exposure. By quantifying genetic risk through the calculation of polygenic risk score (PRS), this study further examined the interactions between genetic risk and exposure to air pollutants in the development of MI on both additive and multiplicative scales. RESULTS: to 324%). Remarkably, both multiplicative and additive interactions were detected in the ambient air pollutants exposure and genetic risk on the incidence of MI. DISCUSSION: There were interactions between exposure to ambient air pollutants and genetic susceptibility on the risk of MI onset. Moreover, the joint effects of these two exposures were greater than the effect of each factor alone. https://doi.org/10.1289/EHP14291.