AN ASSOCIATION STUDY OF A1166C POLYMORPHISM OF THE AGTR1 GENE WITH CEREBRAL STROKE IN RUSSIAN POPULATION OF CENTRAL RUSSIA

Introduction. The renin-angiotensin system is a major regulator of blood pressure. The angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AGTR1) plays a key role in blood pressure control, and is implicated in the pathogenesis of cerebrovascular disease. Polymorphisms within the AGTR1 gene have been found to be associated with the risk cerebral stroke (CS) in some populations. However, the exact role of this gene polymorphism in genetic predisposition to cerebrovascular disease is unclear. Purpose. The aim of thisstudy was to investigate the association of polymorphism A1166C (rs5186) of AGTR1 gene with the risk of cerebral stroke in hypertensive patients of Central Russia. Materials and methods. The patients with CS and healthy controls were recruited at Kursk hospitals during periods 2007 and 2010, and also between 2012 and 2013. We studied DNA samples obtained from 830 subjects, including 454 CS patients and 276 sex- and age-matched healthy controls with normal blood pressure level. The diagnosis of CS in all cases was confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging investigation. The polymorphism A1166C of AGTR1 genewas genotyped by TaqMan allele discrimination assay. Results and discussion. Comparative analysis showed a difference in allele and genotype frequencies of polymorphism A1166C of AGTR1 genebetween the case and control groups. The study suggests that the AGTR1 gene A1166C polymorphism is not associated with susceptibility to CS in population from Central Russian region. Analysis stratified by a gender did not reveal the associations of the AGTR1 gene A1166C polymorphism with the CS risk. Our results are in agreement with the studies performed in other Russian and African Americans populations regarding the polymorphismA1166C of the AGTR1 gene. It is not a susceptibility gene for cerebral stroke.