Association between the rs4880 polymorphism in the SOD2 gene and hypertensive diseases in workers of the converter plant of a ferrous metallurgy enterprise

Minimizing occupational health hazards in the industrial sector is one of the priority tasks of occupational medicine. The study is devoted to establishing the relationship between individual genetic characteristics and hypertensive diseases in ferrous metallurgy workers. Its relevance is determined by the need to form risk groups and develop preventive measures aimed at maintaining long-term work ability of employees. The aim of the study is to determine the relationship between the rs4880 polymorphism of the SOD2 gene and hypertensive diseases (ICD-10 code range I10–I15) in workers of the converter plant. The study involved 354 male workers of a metallurgical plant aged 30 to 59 years. The observation group consisted of 203 workers of the converter plant. The reference group included 151 workers of the administrative and management departments of the enterprise. DNA was isolated from whole blood using the Lumipure kit (Lumiprobe, Russia). Polymorphism was determined by RT-PCR using the SNP-Screen commercial test kit (Syntol, Russia). The workers were then grouped based on the results of genotyping. We conducted the nonparametric Mann–Whitney test and the Kruskal–Wallis test and calculated the odds ratio when analyzing the values of the parameters. The analysis revealed that the risk of hypertensive diseases was higher in carriers of the TT genotype of the SOD2 gene in the main group of male workers of the converter plant (OR=2.019; 95% CI: 1.063–3.833; p=0.03). Moreover, the mutant homozygous TT genotype, as well as the T allele, were shown to be associated with higher blood pressure values. The rs4880 polymorphism in the SOD2 gene can be considered as a risk factor for the occurrence and development of hypertensive diseases in male workers of the converter plant. Limitations. We did not establish the main occupational hazards the subjects were exposed to. Ethics. Ethics approval was provided by the Local Ethics Committee of the Yekaterinburg Medical Research Center for Prophylaxis and Health Protection in Industrial Workers (protocol No. 1 of February 26, 2021); the study was conducted in accordance with the generally accepted scientific principles of the WMA Declaration of Helsinki 2013.