Association of the alpha-adducin polymorphism with blood pressure and riskof myocardial infarction

Genetic variation in adducin, a protein associated with the leaflet of the plasma membrane, may be in part responsible for salt-sensitive hypertension . In the Netherlands, 560 men who survived a myocardial infarction and 646 men who had undergone an orthopaedic intervention participated in a case-co ntrol study. In men in this study, the alpha-adducin polymorphism was not a ssociated with the risk of myocardial infarction either among those with or among those without a clinical history of hypertension. In a cross-section al analysis of blood pressure data from the controls, the alpha-adducin pol ymorphism was associated neither with self-reported hypertension (OR = 0.78 , 95% Cl = 0.51-1.19) nor with mean levels of systolic or diastolic blood p ressure. Additional studies in other populations are needed to assess the c ontribution of alpha-adducin to high blood pressure and cardiovascular risk .