Apo E polymorphism among Egyptian patients with essential hypertension

Hypertension (HTN) is a chronic condition of concern due to its role in the causation of coronary artery disease (CAD), stroke, and other vascular complications. Essential hypertension (EH) is a multifactorial disorder arising from the influence of several susceptibility genes and environmental stimuli. Apolipoprotein E (Apo E) plays an essential role in clearance of chylomicron remnants and very low-density lipoproteins (VLDL). Apo E gene has three alleles (E2, E3, and E4) that give rise to six different genotypes. A significant association of E4 allele has been observed with HTN in addition to the other well-known risk factors and positive family history. Carriers of E4 allele form a higher risk group showing greater susceptibility to CAD. These observations emphasize the need of genotyping Apo E in patients with EH as an important molecular tool in personalized medicine. The aim of this work was to study the association between Apo E gene polymorphism and EH in Egyptian patients as well as correlating different Apo E genotypes with serum lipids. The study was conducted on 50 patients with EH and 50 age-matched controls. DNA analysis was performed using polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism. The E3/E3 genotype was found in 85.42 % of patients, compared to 80 % in controls. E3/E4 (8.33 %) and E2/E3 (6.25 %) were lower in patients compared to controls 12 and 8 %, respectively. E4/E4 and E2/E2 genotypes were only found in two patients (4 %). Total cholesterol and low-density lipoprotein were significantly higher in E3/E4 as compared to E3/E3 and E2/E3. However, there was no significant difference in triglyceride, high-density lipoprotein, and VLDL.