Association of genetic polymorphisms of SAA1 (rs12218) with myocardial infarction in a Chinese population

Previous studies suggested that genetic polymorphisms of serum amyloid A (SAA) were associated with carotid atherosclerosis. However, the relationship between genetic polymorphisms of SAA and myocardial infarction (MI) remains unclear. In the present study, we analyzed a polymorphism (rs12218) in the SAA1 gene in 840 MI patients and 840 healthy subjects by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP) method. We found that the rs12218 CC+CT genotype was more frequent among MI patients than among healthy controls (61.1% vs 41.9%; P < 0.001). Multivariate regression analysis showed that after adjustment for gender, age, smoking, drinking, hypertension, and diabetes, the difference remained significant (P < 0.001, odds ratio = 3.332, 95% confidence interval = 1.781-9.231). Therefore, we concluded that genetic polymorphisms of SAA1 may be a genetic marker of MI in the Chinese population.