Objective: CYP4A11 oxidizes endogenous arachidonic acid to 20-hydroxyeicosatetraenoic acid, a renal vasoconstrictor and natriuretic in humans. Previous studies demonstrated an association between a functional variant (T8590C) of CYP4A11 and essential hypertension, though with conflicting results. To elucidate this relationship, a case-control study and meta-analysis were performed to assess the possible association of essential hypertension with CYP4A11 genetic variations.
Methods: Associations between the T8590C polymorphism and essential hypertension were examined in 328 unrelated cases and 297 age-matched controls in Han Chinese individuals. High-resolution melting was used to identify the CYP4A11 variant. To further investigate the association, we conducted a meta-analysis including eight studies published previously in July 2012.
Results: The frequency of the CYP4A11 T8590C polymorphism showed no significant difference between cases and controls (all P>0.05). However, the meta-analysis showed that the CYP4A11 T8590C polymorphism may increase the risk of essential hypertension in an additive model (OR: 1.15, 95% CI: 1.02-1.29, P = 0.02), a dominant model (OR: 1.06, 95% CI: 1.01-1.32, P = 0.03), a recessive model (OR: 1.52, 95% CI: 1.15-2.02, P = 0.003) and a homozygote contrast (OR: 1.38, 95% CI: 1.07-1.78, P = 0.01). Also, a significant relationship was observed among Caucasians in the additive model, the homozygote contrast, the recessive model and the dominant model (all P<0.05). However, no association was observed in an Asian population (all P>0.05).
Conclusions: This meta-analysis suggests there is a significant association between the CYP4A11 T8590C variant and essential hypertension, especially in Caucasians. The case-control study did not find a significant association among the Han Chinese population, but the controls were poorly matched and meaningful conclusions cannot therefore be made. Further large-scale studies are needed to clarify whether the CYP4A11 T8590C polymorphism is associated with hypertension risk in Asians or has a gender-specific effect.