Background: The Trp64Arg polymorphism in the beta₃-adrenergic receptor (beta₃-AR) gene was extensively studied concerning the relationship with cardiovascular (CV) diseases, but few studies addressed this issue in athletes.
Aim: To examine the relationship between the Trp64Arg polymorphism in the beta₃-AR gene and several CV functions such as cardiac structure and function or blood biochemical parameters in Korean male controls and athletes.
Methods: We recruited a total of 114 study subjects, including 81 male athletes (8 long distance runners, 17 soccer, 8 baseball, 10 basketball, 8 volleyball, 8 ice hockey, 8 judo, 6 taekwondo and 8 gymnastics) and 33 controls. Two dimensional echocardiography was performed in order to assess the cardiac structure and function and blood biochemical parameters were measured. Genotyping of Trp64Arg polymorphism in the beta₃-AR gene was also performed by the SNaPshot method.
Results: The genotype and allele distribution of Trp64Arg polymorphism in the beta₃-AR gene were significantly different among each sporting discipline, showing the highest Arg allele frequency in volleyball and gymnastics (p < 0.05). Also, this polymorphism was significantly associated with serum HDL-cholesterol and glucose level in athletes only (p < 0.05).
Conclusions: Our data showed the significant associations between the Trp64Arg polymorphism in the beta₃-AR gene and some CV parameters such as serum HDL-cholesterol and glucose levels in athletes. However, further studies of the precise mechanism behind these associations are needed.