Heritability of central blood pressure and arterial stiffness:  a twin study.
OBJECTIVE
Central blood pressure and aortic stiffness have been consistently reported as strong cardiovascular risk factors. Twin studies by comparing identical with nonidentical twins produce information on the relative contribution of genes and environment.


METHODS
One hundred and fifty-four monozygotic (MZ) and 42 dizygotic (DZ) twin pairs (age 43 ± 17 years) from Hungary and the United States underwent brachial and central augmentation index (AIx), brachial and central pressure, and aortic pulse wave velocity (PWV) measurements with the invasively validated Arteriograph device. Bivariate Cholesky decomposition models were applied.


RESULTS
Age-adjusted, sex-adjusted and country-adjusted heritability was 60.0% for central SBP [95% confidence interval (CI), 44.8-69.6%], 50.1% for aortic PWV (95%CI, 26.0-66.8%), 48.7% for aortic AIx (95%CI, 1.7-74.0%), 46.8% for brachial AIx (95%CI, 1.1-73.8%), 46.7% for central pulse pressure (PP) (95%CI, 12.4-61.4%), and 30.0% for brachial PP (95%CI, 0.0-53.4%). Central SBP and PP had strong bivariate correlations with brachial (r = 0.461 and 0.425) and central AIx (r = 0.457 and 0.419), as well as with aortic PWV (r = 0.341 and 0.292, all P < 0.001). Brachial PP had a weak correlation with brachial AIx (r = -0.118, P < 0.05), central AIx (r = -0.122, P < 0.05), and none with aortic PWV (r = 0.08, P = n.s.). Genetic factors explained a moderate phenotypic correlation between central PP, SBP, brachial SBP and aortic PWV.


CONCLUSIONS
Central systolic and PPs, brachial PP, AIx, aortic PWV are moderately heritable. A moderate genetic covariance among aortic PWV and central PP, central SBP and brachial SBP was found.
Department of Radiology and Oncotherapy, Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary. tarnoki2@gmail.com
Adam Domonkos
AD
Tarnoki
David Laszlo
DL
Tarnoki
Maria Antonietta
MA
Stazi
Emanuela
E
Medda
Rodolfo
R
Cotichini
Lorenza
L
Nisticò
Corrado
C
Fagnani
Pierleone
P
Lucatelli
Emanuele
E
Boatta
Chiara
C
Zini
Fabrizio
F
Fanelli
Claudio
C
Baracchini
Giorgio
G
Meneghetti
Janos
J
Osztovits
Gyorgy
G
Jermendy
István
I
Préda
Róbert Gábor
RG
Kiss
Julia
J
Metneki
Tamas
T
Horvath
Kinga
K
Karlinger
Adel
A
Racz
Agnes
A
Lannert
Andrea Agnes
AA
Molnar
Levente
L
Littvay
Zsolt
Z
Garami
Viktor
V
Berczi
Giuseppe
G
Schillaci
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D001783:Blood Flow Velocity; D001794:Blood Pressure / Q000235:genetics*; D001795:Blood Pressure Determination; D001916:Brachial Artery / Q000502:physiology; D004200:Diseases in Twins / Q000235:genetics*; D004548:Elasticity / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D020022:Genetic Predisposition to Disease; D006801:Humans; D007391:International Cooperation; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010641:Phenotype; D011673:Pulsatile Flow; D012307:Risk Factors; D014429:Twins, Dizygotic / Q000235:genetics*; D014430:Twins, Monozygotic / Q000235:genetics*; D014655:Vascular Resistance / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology; D059289:Vascular Stiffness / Q000235:genetics*; D055815:Young Adult