title: Insertion/deletion polymorphism in the angiotensin-converting enzyme gene affects heart weight.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Angiotensin (Ang) II, a major regulatory factor for left ventricular mass, is generated from Ang I by ACE. ACE levels are associated with an insertion/deletion (I/D) polymorphism in the ACE gene. The ACE polymorphism should result in varied Ang II concentrations and hence affect left ventricular mass. We therefore investigated whether ACE genotype is a predictor of heart weight.
  
  
  RESULTS
  From 693 consecutive patients autopsied between 1994 and 1998 in our hospital, patients with valvular disease, myocardial infarction, or cardiomyopathy were excluded. The remaining 443 autopsy patients were the subjects of our study. The heart weight at autopsy was corrected for body surface area. Genomic DNA was purified from the kidney, and ACE genotype was determined by polymerase chain reaction. Heart weight in the DD genotype (249. 9+/-49.9 g/m(2)) was significantly higher than that in the ID (230. 0+/-51.2 g/m(2); P<0.05) and II (226.8+/-49.8 g/m(2); P<0.01) genotypes. Heart weight was also positively related to age (r=0.145, P<0.0001) and coronary stenosis index (r=0.147, P=0.0019). Multiple regression analysis showed that a history of hypertension (P<0.0001), age (P=0.0001), and DD genotype (P=0.0154) were independent predictors of heart weight.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  ACE genotype predicts cardiac mass; however, it was less effective than epigenetic factors such as hypertension or age.
authors.affiliation: Department of Laboratory Medicine, Tokyo Metropolitan Geriatric Hospital, Tokyo, Japan. nakahara@tmig.or.jp
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Nakahara
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Matsushita
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Matsuoka
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Inamatsu
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nishinaga
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Yonawa
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Aono
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Arai
authors.forename: Y
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Ezaki
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Orimo
mesh_terms: D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements / Q000502:physiology*; D005260:Female; D017353:Gene Deletion; D005838:Genotype; D006321:Heart / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D009929:Organ Size / Q000502:physiology; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A / Q000235:genetics*; D010641:Phenotype; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D007703:Peptidyl-Dipeptidase A