Gender-specific association of polymorphisms in the 5′-UTR and 3′-UTR of VEGF gene with hypertensive patients

Abstract

Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) is one of the most potent angiogenic factors. VEGF plasma levels have been reported to be significantly elevated in the patients with hypertension. This study aims to elucidate the associations of the VEGF −634G>C and 936C>T polymorphisms with the hypertensive patients in Korea. Genotyping of the VEGF polymorphisms was carried out by polymerase chain reaction and endonuclease digestion. The C allele of the VEGF−634G>C polymorphism and T allele of the 936C>T polymorphism were significantly higher in the hypertensive patients than in the normotensive controls. When the data of the genotype were stratified by gender, the association was gender-specific. We also found the associations of the haplotypes, composed of the VEGF−634G>C and 936C>T polymorphisms, with hypertensive group. Dominant models of −634G>C and 936C>T polymorphisms were associated with risk components of hypertension, according to the stratification analysis. Thus, this study demonstrates that the VEGF −634G>C and 936C>T polymorphisms may provide important genetic markers in identifying people at risk for hypertension. So far, association studies of VEGF gene polymorphisms with the hypertensive patients were rare. Therefore, further evaluation is required in other ethnic or racial populations with large samples to confirm our data.