Apolipoprotein E polymorphism and the relationships of physical fitness toplasma lipoprotein-lipid levels in men and women

Purpose: A high level of cardiovascular fitness is generally associated wit h a plasma lipoprotein-lipid profile predictive of a low cardiovascular dis ease risk. We have investigated whether apolipoprotein (apo) E polymorphism could alter the relationships of physical fitness to plasma lipoprotein-li pid levels in a sample of healthy untrained subjects (64 premenopausal wome n and 65 men). Methods: Subjects were grouped according to gender and apo E phenotype determined by isoelectric focusing electrophoresis. Results: In both genders, (V) over dot O-2max expressed in mL.kg(-1).min(-1) was negati vely correlated with plasma triglyceride levels in apo E2 carriers and apo E3 homozygotes (-0.55 less than or equal to r less than or equal to - 0.31; P < 0.05), whereas these associations were not found in apo E4 groups. Pla sma low-density lipoprotein (LDL)-C levels were negatively associated with (V) over dot O-2max (r = -0.39; P < 0.05) only in women homozygotes for apo E3 whereas (V) over dot O-2max was positively correlated with plasma high- density lipoprotein (HDL)(2)-C levels only in men (r = 0.51; P < 0.001) and women (r = 0.65; P < 0.001) who were apo E3 homozygotes. A control for con comitant association with body fat mass and glucose intolerance performed b y partial correlation analyses revealed that, with the exception of the pla sma HDL2-C levels in the apo E3 homozygotes, most of the significant associ ations between (V) over dot O-2max (mL.kg(-1).min(-1)) and plasma lipoprote in-lipid levels were mediated by concomitant variation in body fatness and glucose tolerance. Conclusions: These results suggest that the magnitude of the relationships between (V) over dot O-2max and plasma lipoprotein-lipid levels is influenced by the apo E polymorphism. Thus, apo E2 carriers may be particularly responsive to improved fitness, thereby preventing the deve lopment of hypertriglyceridemia and type III dyslipoproteinemia.