Apolipoprotein E Polymorphism And Dyslipidemia In Elderly Patients Of Calcific Aortic Stenosis.

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the impact of the Apo E polymorphisms on plasma lipid profile and identify the apo-E gene's polymorphism as a genetic predictor of calcific AS in the Pakistani population. Methodology: This was a case-control study conducted at Dow University of Health Sciences and the National Institute of Cardiovascular Disease, Karachi. It included a total of 100 individuals, 50 echocardiographically identified calcific AS cases and 50 age and gender matched controls. Apo E allele frequencies were computed, lipid profiles were estimated and Apo E gene polymorphism was identified by the techniques of polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP). Result: Apo E 2, 3, and 4 allele frequencies were 16%, 52%, and 32% in calcific AS cases, and 10%, 52%, and 28% in controls respectively (p=0.622). Out of 50 cases, 18% presented with mild AS, 22% with moderate AS and 60% lied in severe calcific AS. It was observed that levels of total cholesterol (TC), triglyceride (TG) and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) were higher in the Apo E4 allele as compared to other genes in both cases and control. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggested that the Apo E4 allele of the Apo E gene is an important risk factor for dyslipidemia while the Apo E4 allele is not associated with calcific AS and contemplates distinctive genetic backgrounds of CAD and AS. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]