BACKGROUND: Oxidative stress induced by the superoxide anion (.O2-) has been implicated in atherogenesis. The NADH/NADPH oxidase system is involved in.O2- production and p22 phox is an essential component of that system. MATERIAL AND METHODS: We analysed the p22 phox C242T polymorphism in 689 consecutive Australian Caucasians aged </= 65 years with and without angiographically documented coronary artery disease (CAD) RESULTS: We report the rare T allele frequency of 0.33, which is 3 fold higher than that reported in the Japanese population by Inoue et al. [7]. The genotype distributions were not different among patients with CAD (CC:0.422, CT:0.459 and TT: 0.119 in men; 0.447, 0.439 and 0.114 in women) and without CAD (0.479, 0. 420 and 0.101%, chi2 = 0.794, P = 0.672 in men; 0.443, 0.471 and 0. 86, chi2 = 0.442, P = 0.802 in women). The frequencies of the rare TT homozygotes or of the 'T' allele frequency were also not associated with the number of significantly stenosed vessels (chi2 = 4.466, P = 0.614 in men; chi2 = 4.736, P = 0.578 in women) or with a myocardial infarction (MI) history (chi2 = 2.310, P = 0.315 in men; chi2 = 1.178, P = 0.555 in women). However, when the analysis was conducted in young male patients aged </= 45 years (n = 44), TT + TC patients tended to have an increased risk for CAD (odds ratio: 5.71 95% CI: 1.22-26.75, P = 0.0271). CONCLUSION: The p22 phox C242T polymorphism is not associated with the occurrence or severity of CAD or with a history of MI in Australian Caucasian patients aged </= 65 years. However, the polymorphism could be associated with an increased CAD risk in young patients, which requires confirmation in large populations.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Cai et al. (1999) studied this question.