Abstract

The 5-lipoxygenase activating protein, an important regulator in the biosynthesis of proinflammatory leukotrienes, has been reported to confer risks for cardiovascular diseases and stroke. The purpose of this study is to assess whether genetic variants in the ALOX5AP encoding the 5-lipoxygenase activating protein will influence the risk for stroke in the Chinese population. A total of 1,773 patients with stroke and 1,713 controls were recruited from seven clinical centers. Polymorphisms of SG13S114T/A and SG13S89G/A in the ALOX5AP were genotyped by the polymerase chain reaction and the restriction enzyme analysis. The multivariate logistic regression model was used to exclude the influence of the conventional vascular risk factors on stroke. The frequency of SG13S114A allele in the ALOX5AP was significantly higher in male patients with thrombotic stroke (33.6%) than in controls (29.2%; P=0.014). The SG13S114AA genotype was significantly associated with a 1.62-fold risk for thrombotic stroke in men (95% confidence interval, 1.11 to 2.35; P=0.012). The SG13S89G/A variant was not associated with stroke or its subtypes. Haplotype analysis showed no significant differences between stroke patients and controls. The present study suggested that a common genetic variant SG13S114T/A in the ALOX5AP gene is associated with an increased risk for atherothrombotic stroke in Chinese males, and racial differences in allele and genotype frequencies may account partially for the different association findings between populations.