Association of the Scal atrial natriuretic peptide gene polymorphism with nonfatal myocardial infarction and extent of coronary artery disease

Background There is growing evidence from recent studies that atrial natriuretic peptide (ANP) plays an important part in coronary blood flow regulation and in atherosclerosis. Transition T2238-->C in the atrial natriuretic peptide (AN precursor gene, which leads potentially to the translation of ANP with 2 additional arginines, has been suggested to be associated with salt-sensitive hypertension. According to our knowledge, this study is the first to look for the potential association of the Scal ANP gene polymorphism with the history of nonfatal myocardial infarction and the extent of coronary artery disease (CAD). Methods The study was performed in 847 consecutive, white patients (719 men and 128 women) with significant coronary artery stenosis confirmed by means of elective coronary angiography (at least 1 coronary artery with greater than or equal to50% lumen narrowing). Screening for the T2238-->C substitution was performed by means of polymerase chain reaction of genomic DNA, followed by Scal digestion and agarose gel electrophoresis. Results We found a significant association of the A2A2 Scal ANP genotype with a higher incidence of positive history of nonfatal myocardial infarction (odds ratio 1.85, 95% Cl 1.33-2.58) and multiple-vessel CAD (odds ratio 1.45, 95% Cl 1.02-2.06). The Scal ANP genotype distribution did not differ with age, sex, body mass index, plasma lipids, hypertension, diabetes mellitus, and family history of CAD in studied groups. Conclusions Our results suggest that the Scal ANP polymorphism may be associated with nonfatal myocardial infarction and the extent of CAD. However, the precise mechanism of this association remains to be determined.