Apolipoprotein E gene polymorphisms are associated with primary hyperuricemia in a Chinese population

PLoS One. 2014 Oct 30;9(10):e110864. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0110864. eCollection 2014.

Abstract

Objective: Primary hyperuricemia, an excess of uric acid in the blood, is a major public health problem. In addition to the morbidity that is attributable to gout, hyperuricemia is also associated with metabolic syndrome, hypertension, and cardiovascular disease. This study aims to assess the genetic associations between Apolipoprotein E (APOE) polymorphisms and hyperuricemia in a Chinese population.

Methods: A total of 770 subjects (356 hyperuricemic cases and 414 normouricemic controls) were recruited from the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, China. A physical examination was performed and fasting blood was collected for biochemical tests, including determination of the levels of serum lipid, creatinine, and uric acid. Multi-ARMS PCR was applied to determine the APOE genotypes, followed by an investigation of the distribution of APOE genotypes and alleles frequencies in the controls and cases.

Results: The frequencies of the APOE-ε2ε3 genotype (17.70% vs. 10.39%, P = 0.003) and the APOE-ε2 allele (10.53% vs. 5.80%, P = 0.001) were significantly higher in the hyperuricemic group than in the normouricemic group. Furthermore, male cases were more likely to have the APOE-ε2ε3 genotype and APOE-ε2 allele, compared with male controls. In both Han and Hui subjects, cases were more likely to have the APOE-ε2ε3 genotype and the APOE-ε2 allele compared with controls. Furthermore, multivariate logistic regression showed that carriers of the APOE-ε2ε3 genotype (P = 0.001, OR = 2.194) and the ε2 allele (P = 0.001, OR = 2.099) were significantly more likely to experience hyperuricemia than carriers of the ε3/ε3 genotype and the ε3 allele after adjustment for sex, body mass index (BMI), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), triglyceride (TG), low density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL-C), creatinine (Cr) and fasting blood glucose (FBG).

Conclusions: The APOE-ε2ε3 genotype and the APOE-ε2 allele are associated with serum uric acid levels in Chinese subjects, indicating that individuals carrying the APOE-ε2 allele have a higher risk of hyperuricemia than non-carriers.

Publication types

  • Randomized Controlled Trial
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Aged
  • Aged, 80 and over
  • Alleles*
  • Apolipoproteins E / blood
  • Apolipoproteins E / genetics*
  • Asian People
  • Child
  • China
  • Creatinine / blood
  • Female
  • Genotype*
  • Humans
  • Hyperuricemia / blood
  • Hyperuricemia / genetics*
  • Lipids / blood
  • Male
  • Middle Aged
  • Polymorphism, Genetic
  • Uric Acid / blood

Substances

  • Apolipoproteins E
  • Lipids
  • Uric Acid
  • Creatinine

Grants and funding

This work was supported by the Special funding for Key Basic Research Project of the Ministry of Science and Technology of China (2006FY110300), the National Natural Science funding of China (grants 81301508). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.