MOLECULAR VARIANT M235T OF THE ANGIOTENSINOGEN GENE IS ASSOCIATED WITH ESSENTIAL-HYPERTENSION IN TAIWANESE

Objective To examine the association of the molecular variants of the angiotensinogen (AGT) gene with essential hypertension in Taiwanese. M ethods We conducted a case-control study concerning 151 subjects, 102 hypertensives and 49 normotensives. We created a rapid mini-sequencing method based on dye-terminator cycle sequencing to simultaneously det ect the M235T and T174M variants of the AGT gene for each subject. Res ults The genotype and allele distribution of the M235T variant differe d significantly in hypertensives and normotensives (chi(2) = 11.106, P = 0.004 and chi(2) = 6.453, P = 0.011, respectively), whereas those o f the T174M variant did not differ (chi(2) = 0.004, P = 0.998 and chi( 2) = 0.032, P = 0.858, respectively). The odds ratio for hypertension was 3.64 (95% confidence interval 1.56-8.49) for subjects with the C/C genotype of the M235T variant compared with other genotypes or 2.87 ( 95% confidence interval 1.76-4.68) for those carrying allele C versus those carrying allele T. Conclusion The molecular variant M235T, but n ot T174M, of the AGT gene is associated significantly with essential h ypertension in this Taiwanese population. The genotype C/C or allele C is a risk factor for hypertension. The underlying mechanism of this a ssociation needs to be elucidated further.