Kim Jung O, Jeon Young Joo, Kim Ok Joon, Oh Seung Hun, Kim Hyun Sook, Shin Byoung Soo, Oh Doyeun, Kim Eo Jin, Cho Yun Kyung, Kim Nam Keun
Institute for Clinical Research, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University School of Medicine, Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do 463-712, Republic of Korea.
Department of Neurology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Seongnam, Gyeonggi-do 463-712, Republic of Korea.
Mol Med Rep. 2014 Jun;9(6):2459-66. doi: 10.3892/mmr.2014.2072. Epub 2014 Mar 27.
Silent brain infarction (SBI) is an asymptomatic cerebrovascular disorder. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between adrenoceptor-α2 (ADRA2) gene polymorphisms and SBI. A total of 361 patients with SBI and 467 healthy control subjects were examined. The polymerase chain reaction was performed to genotype the ADRA2A 1780G>A, ADRA2B 301-303 insertion/deletion (I/D) and ADRA2C 322-325I/D polymorphisms. The frequency of the ADRA2C 322-325I/D polymorphism was significantly different between patients with SBI and control subjects. When interaction analyses were performed for vascular risk factors, the ADRA2C 322-325ID genotype increased the risk for SBI in the presence of hypertension and elevated plasma homocysteine levels. The ADRA2C 322-325ID genotype and plasma homocysteine levels showed a significant synergistic effect for SBI. In addition, the ADRA2A 1780AA genotype was associated with elevated plasma homocysteine levels. Although further analysis of the association between ADRA2 polymorphisms and clinical risk factors of SBI is required, the present study of a limited set of SBI risk factors with ADRA2 polymorphisms provides the first evidence of the involvement of ADRA2 gene family members in the development of SBI. Further studies using larger and more heterogeneous populations are required to validate the association of ADRA2 polymorphisms with SBI.
