G. Eggertsen et al., INFLUENCE OF VARIATION AT THE APOLIPOPROTEIN-E LOCUS ON LIPID AND LIPOPROTEIN LEVELS IN CAPD PATIENTS, Nephrology, dialysis, transplantation, 12(1), 1997, pp. 141-144
Background, Variation at the apolipoprotein E (ape E) locus influence
lipid and lipoprotein levels in the normal population, and is associat
ed with premature coronary artery disease. Patients with end-stage kid
ney disease or undergoing dialysis treatment are particularly prone to
develop accelerated atherosclerosis. Methods. To evaluate the influen
ce of genetic variation at the apo E locus, apo E genotypes and serum
lipid and lipoprotein levels were measured in 51 subjects undergoing c
ontinuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD). Results. The distribu
tion of apo E phenotypes and apo E allelic frequency among the CAPD su
bjects (epsilon 2 0.049; epsilon 3 0.745; epsilon 4 0.206) corresponde
d to the healthy Swedish population. In the CAPD subjects, total serum
and LDL cholesterol levels were high (6.7 +/- 1.5 mmol/l and 4.2 +/-
1.3 mmol/l respectively) and HDL cholesterol levels were low (1.2 +/-
0.5 mmol/l). When directly comparing the two major apo E groups, E 3/3
subjects (n = 30) and E4/3 and 4/4 subjects, epsilon 4-carriers, (n =
16), LDL cholesterol levels were significantly higher among E4-carrie
rs (4.8 +/- 1.1 vs 4.0 +/- 1.2 mmol/l, P<0.03), but total serum choles
terol levels was not higher among the E4-carriers (7.3+/-1.3 vs 6.5 +/
- 1.5 mmol/l, P < 0.08). Serum triglycerides or HDL cholesterol levels
did not differ significantly between epsilon 3-homozygotes and epsilo
n 4-carriers. Conclusions, The results demonstrate a strong effect of
variation of the apo E locus on LDL cholesterol levels in CAPD subject
s, suggesting that epsilon 4-carriers may be more susceptible to accel
erated development of atherosclerosis in this condition.