Abstract:
ABSTRACT
Introduction: Despite the fact that mechanisms underlying hypertension are not yet fully
elucidated, a large amount of evidence have showed that genetic alterations in the renin
angiotensin aldosterone system plays a central role in its pathophysiology. However, the
association of insertion/deletion polymorphism of angiotensin converting enzyme (ACE) gene
with essential hypertension is controversial yet.
Objective: The aim of this study was to evaluate ACE gene I/D polymorphism and its effect
on the anthropometric and biochemical factors among essential hypertension patients at
University of Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Gondar, Ethiopia.
Materials and methods: A case control study was conducted from October 07, 2020 to June
02, 2021 among hypertensive patients and normotensive control groups at University of
Gondar Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northwest Ethiopia. Five milliliters of blood
was drawn from each of randomly selected 64 hypertensive and 64 normotensive participants
for molecular and biochemical analysis. Genetic polymorphism of ACE gene was identified
using PCR and electrophoresis. Structured questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic data, and anthropometric measurements. Data analysis was done using SPSS
version 25.0 software. Chi-square (?2) test, independent t-test and one way ANOVA were used
to compare study variables. The risk association between the genotype and hypertension was
estimated through the calculation of adjusted odds ratio and 95% confidence intervals using
logistic regression. P value < 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.
Result: The ACE DD genotype and D allele were more frequent in hypertensive patients
(48.4% and 63.3%) as compared to controls (29.7% and 42.2%), respectively. The SBP
(P=0.042), DBP (P<0.001) and FBG level (P<0.001) were significantly higher among study
participants with DD genotype.
Conclusion: The present study found that the DD genotype and D allele of ACE gene
polymorphism have had strong association with high risk of hypertension in the study
population. The SBP, DBP and FBG level were significantly different among individuals with
different ACE gene I/D polymorphism.
Key words: Hypertension, ACE gene, Gene polymorphism, Genotype
