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(Hypertension. 2007;50:348.)
© 2007 American Heart Association, Inc.

Original Articles

Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Genotype Interacts With Systolic Blood Pressure to Determine Coronary Heart Disease Risk in Healthy Middle-Aged Men

Amal Muthumala; Hugh Montgomery; Jutta Palmen; Jackie A. Cooper; Steve E. Humphries

From the Centre For Cardiovascular Genetics (A.M., J.P., J.A.C., S.E.H.), Royal Free and UCL Medical School, The Rayne Institute, London, UK; and the Institute for Human Health and Performance (H.M.), London, UK.

Correspondence to Dr Amal Muthumala, Centre For Cardiovascular Genetics, Royal Free and UCL Medical School, The Rayne Institute, 5 University Street, London, WC1E 6JF, UK. E-mail amal.muthumala{at}uclh.org

The impact of the ACE I/D polymorphism on coronary heart disease (CHD) risk is modest at most, however it may act as a modifier gene. ACE genotype was determined in 2711 healthy middle-aged men (mean age 56 years) followed for 15 years. No genotype-CHD risk association was found, but when analyzed by quartiles of systolic blood pressure (SBP), compared with II homozygotes, carriage of each additional D allele was protective at lower SBP, but in the highest quartile (SBP >150 mm Hg) conferred almost 1.5 times the risk for CHD (genotype interaction P=0.003). When SBP was analyzed as a continuous variable, again a highly significant association was seen, with the hazard ratio ([95% CI]) for a 1 SD increase in SBP being 0.90 [0.70 to 1.15] for IIs and 1.40 [1.21 to 1.61] for ID/DD (genotype SBP interaction P=0.002). The D allele was protective against CHD at lower SBP but would overtake the II risk at higher SBP. In hypertension, the proinflammatory or prohypertrophic properties of angiotensin II may explain this association. The LPL S447X polymorphism also impacts on CHD risk through interaction with hypertension, and there was an additive action of these 2 polymorphisms and SBP on CHD risk (hazard ratio for 1 SD increase in SBP for combined genotypes 1.78 [1.30 to 2.45]). Thus in the presence of hypertension, common variation in "modifier" genes confers significant CHD risk.

Key Words: systolic • risk factors • genetics-association studies • ACE gene • CHD • hypertension