Differences in the association of PAI-1 activity with the metabolic syndrome between African and Caucasian women.
OBJECTIVE
The association between PAI-1(act) and markers of the metabolic syndrome is well established in Caucasian populations, but data on African subjects is lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate possible differences between the association of PAI-1(act) and markers of the metabolic syndrome in Caucasian and African women.


RESULTS
Cross-sectional data were collected from 95 African and 114 Caucasian women in the Potchefstroom district of the North West Province, South Africa. Plasma PAI-1(act) was almost twice as high in Caucasians compared to Africans (10.2 versus 5.2 U/mL, p<0.001). Correlations between markers of the metabolic syndrome and PAI-1(act) were remarkably stronger in Caucasians than in Africans. In multivariate regression analyses 56% of the variance of PAI-1(act) could be explained by metabolic syndrome variables in the Caucasian group compared to 12% in the African women. Waist circumference was the strongest independent predictor of PAI-1(act) in both groups.


CONCLUSIONS
This study showed lower PAI-1(act) in African than in Caucasian women, along with less associations of PAI-1(act) with markers of the metabolic syndrome in the African than in the Caucasian women. The role of PAI-1(act) in the metabolic syndrome may be less prominent in Africans than in Caucasians.
Greyling
A
A
School for Physiology, Nutrition and Consumer Sciences, North-West University, Potchefstroom Campus, Private Bag X6001, Potchefstroom 2520, South Africa. vgemp@puk.ac.za <vgemp@puk.ac.za>
Pieters
M
M
Hoekstra
T
T
Oosthuizen
W
W
Schutte
A E
AE
D050153:Abdominal Fat / Q000378:metabolism*; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D015415:Biomarkers / Q000097:blood; D044383:Black People; D015992:Body Mass Index; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood* / Q000208:ethnology*; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1 / Q000097:blood*; D012307:Risk Factors; D049629:Waist-Hip Ratio; D044465:White People
D015415:Biomarkers; D017395:Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor 1