Background: The E-selectin mediates the interaction of activated endothelial cells with leukocytes and plays a fundamental role in the pathogenesis of coronary atherosclerosis. It has been suggested that a S/R (Ser128Arg) polymorphism of E-selectin might be associated with the predisposition to coronary artery disease (CAD). Our purpose was to determine whether this S/R polymorphism influences the risk of CAD in Chinese patients.
Methods and results: We studied the human E-selectin gene polymorphism in a Chinese population by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR-RFLP). This polymorphism was determined in 248 CAD patients and in 256 control subjects. Frequencies of the SS, SR, and RR genotypes were found as 86.7%, 13.3%, and 0.0% in CAD patients and 93.8%, 6.2%, and 0.0% in control subjects, respectively. Frequency of the R allele was higher among CAD patients compared to controls(6.7% vs. 3.1%). However, either the genotype or the allele distribution of Ser128Arg polymorphism of E-selectin was statistically significantly different between the two groups (P<0.05). The odds ratio for the risk of CAD associated with the R allele was 2.21 (CI95%:1.20-4.07).
Conclusions: These results suggest that the SR genotype of the E-selectin gene polymorphism in codon 128 is a genetic factor that may determine an individual's susceptibility for CAD in Chinese.