Plasminogen Activator Inhibitor I (PAI-I) -675 5G/4G Polymorphism in Patients with Coronary Artery Disease

摘要

The PAI-I glycoprotein is an important factor of the fibrinolytic process. A polymorphic site in the promoter of the gene is associated with high PAI-I plasma levels and coronary artery disease, acute myo-cardial infarction, atheromatosis and thrombosis. We studied the association of PAI-I -675 5G/4G polymorphism with coronary disease (CAD) and acute myocardial infraction (AMI) in prospective series of patients (46 individuals), who underwent coronary angiography. Our patients were divided into subjects without any detectable coronary artery disease or with no vessel disease and patients with single, double or triple vessel disease and AMI. The PAI-I 4G allele was found in 34 patients. Nineteen patients out of 25 with AMI were carriers, while 8 out of 21 with no AMI had this allele. Twenty-eight patients out of 38 (73,6%) with one or more vessel disease were carriers of 4G allele, while 3 out of 8 with no vessel disease carried this allele, but this difference was not statistically significant. The present study indicates that the 4G allele is an additional risk factor for CAD and AMI. The presence of other major cardiovascular risk factors increases the risk of the above disease.