de Maat Moniek P M, Bladbjerg Else Marie, Hjelmborg Jacob von Bornemann, Bathum Lise, Jespersen Jørgen, Christensen Kaare
Department for Thrombosis Research, University of Southern Denmark, Esbjerg, Denmark.
Arterioscler Thromb Vasc Biol. 2004 Nov;24(11):2168-73. doi: 10.1161/01.ATV.0000143856.01669.e7. Epub 2004 Sep 2.
Inflammation variables (C-reactive protein [CRP], fibrinogen, and soluble intercellular adhesion molecule-1 [sICAM-1]) have been identified as risk factors for cardiovascular disease. It is still not known how much the regulation of inflammatory risk factors is determined by genetic factors, and the aim of this study was to determine the heritability of these inflammation variables and of the acute phase regulating cytokines interleukin-6 (IL-6) and tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) at older ages.
The heritability of CRP, fibrinogen, sICAM-1, IL-6, and TNF-alpha was determined in a twin study consisting of 129 monozygotic twin pairs and 153 dizygotic same-sex twins aged 73 to 94 years who participated in the Longitudinal Study of Aging of Danish Twins. Furthermore, we determined the influence of selected genetic polymorphisms on the plasma level variations. Genetic factors accounted for 20% to 55% of the variation in plasma levels of the inflammation variables. The highest heritability was found for sICAM-1. The genetic polymorphisms we studied explained only a small, insignificant part of the heritability.
This study in elderly twins provides evidence for a substantial genetic component of inflammatory cardiovascular risk factors among the elderly.
炎症变量（C反应蛋白[CRP]、纤维蛋白原和可溶性细胞间黏附分子-1[sICAM-1]）已被确定为心血管疾病的风险因素。目前仍不清楚炎症风险因素的调节在多大程度上由遗传因素决定，本研究的目的是确定这些炎症变量以及老年期急性期调节细胞因子白细胞介素-6（IL-6）和肿瘤坏死因子-α（TNF-α）的遗传度。
在一项双胞胎研究中确定了CRP、纤维蛋白原、sICAM-1、IL-6和TNF-α的遗传度，该研究包括129对同卵双胞胎和153对年龄在73至94岁的同性异卵双胞胎，他们参与了丹麦双胞胎老龄化纵向研究。此外，我们确定了所选基因多态性对血浆水平变化的影响。遗传因素占炎症变量血浆水平变化的20%至55%。sICAM-1的遗传度最高。我们研究的基因多态性仅解释了遗传度中一小部分、无显著意义的部分。
这项针对老年双胞胎的研究为老年人炎症性心血管风险因素的大量遗传成分提供了证据。
