Lack of association between genetic polymorphism of CYP11B2 and hypertension in Japanese: The Suita Study

Aldosterone synthase(CYP11B2) is a key enzyme in the biosynthesis of aldost erone. Recently, a polymorphism in the 5'-flanking region of the CYP11B2 ge ne CT(-344)C] has been reported to be associated with blood pressure and pl asma aldosterone levels. We investigated the association between this polym orphism and hypertension in a large population-based sample of 4,000 Japane se, The genotype distribution in hypertensive subjects (n=1,535) was compar ed to that in normotensive subjects (n=2,514), In subjects not receiving an tihypertensive medication, the influence of the genotype on blood pressure values adjusted for clinical covariates was analyzed. All analyses were per formed separately for men and women. The genotype distribution did not diff er between hypertensive and normotensive subjects in either men (frequency of C allele: 30.3% vs, 31.4%, p=0.48) or women (31.5% vs. 31.7%, p=0.93). T here were no significant differences in systolic blood pressure, diastolic blood pressure, or pulse pressure among the three genotypes in either men o r women who had not received hypertensive medication. Our data suggest that the T(-344)C polymorphism of CYP11B2 is unlikely to influence blood pressu re status in the Japanese population.