Association of the human Y chromosome with cholesterol levels in the general population.
OBJECTIVE
Males are at higher risk of cardiovascular diseases than females. The aim of the study was to test whether the potential of the Y chromosome to affect cardiovascular risk could be attributed to its influence on lipids.


RESULTS
1288 Polish men (1157 subjects from young healthy cohort and 131 individuals from middle-aged hypertensive population) were phenotyped for determinants of cardiovascular risk including BMI, blood pressures, lipids, and testosterone. Each subject was genotyped for the HindIII(+/-) polymorphism within the nonrecombining region of the Y chromosome. Men with the HindIII(-) variant exhibited significantly higher total cholesterol (TC) and low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL) levels than subjects with the HindIII(+) genotype in both populations. The differences between the genotypes were 0.15 mmol/L (P=0.0107) and 0.45 mmol/L (P=0.0377) in TC and 0.15 mmol/L (P=0.0059) and 0.41 mmol/L (P=0.0432) in LDL among young apparently healthy men and middle-aged hypertensive men, respectively. The HindIII(+) was associated with a significant increase in blood pressure of the middle-aged men. Testosterone serum concentrations correlated positively with HDL-cholesterol levels, and this association was independent of the Y chromosome.


CONCLUSIONS
The results indicate that a locus/loci on the Y chromosome may influence LDL levels, independent of testosterone levels.
Charchar
Fadi J
FJ
BHF Glasgow Cardiovascular Research Centre, Division of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, University of Glasgow, Western Infirmary, Glasgow G11 6NT, United Kingdom. fjc4a@clinmed.gla.ac.uk
Tomaszewski
Maciej
M
Lacka
Beata
B
Zakrzewski
Jaroslaw
J
Zukowska-Szczechowska
Ewa
E
Grzeszczak
Wladyslaw
W
Dominiczak
Anna F
AF
D000328:Adult; D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D002784:Cholesterol / Q000097:blood*; D041322:Chromosomes, Human, Y / Q000235:genetics*; D015331:Cohort Studies; D015247:Deoxyribonuclease HindIII / Q000235:genetics; D003920:Diabetes Mellitus / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D005220:Fathers / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D005820:Genetic Testing / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005828:Genetics, Population / Q000379:methods / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005838:Genotype; D006579:Heterozygote; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D008055:Lipids / Q000097:blood; D008297:Male; D009203:Myocardial Infarction / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000235:genetics; D011110:Polymorphism, Genetic / Q000235:genetics; D019655:Quantitative Trait, Heritable
D008055:Lipids; D002784:Cholesterol; D015247:Deoxyribonuclease HindIII