engleski

Apolipoprotein E Polymorphism in the population of the Island of Krk

Apolipoprotein E is a constituent of lipoprotein particles and thus a part of lipid metabolism system. Its gene is polymorphic with three alleles Apo E*2, E*3, E*4. Interest for apolipoprotein E isoformes stems from their connection with cardio-vascular and neurological disorders and use as population structure marker. As a part of eastern Adriatic population structure studies, Apo E polymorphism was investigated in the autochthonous, rural inhabitants of the island of Krk. The sample consisted of 192 males and 205 females from 7 villages with age span from 18-91 years. Collected sera were analyzed by isoelectricfocusing followed by immunoblotting using commercial specific antisera. The determined isoformes relative frequencies were 0.083 for E*2, 0.844 for E*3 and 0.073 for E*4. Compared with two other similar studies in Croatia, carried out in elderly and children, the frequency of Apo E*2 phenotype shows relatively higher values. When all three sets of data combined, variation of allele Apo E*2 and E*4 frequencies with age was revealed. Similar findings were reported for some populations from North America. Apo E allele frequencies reported for other European countries reveal decline of E*3 frequency and increase of E*4 frequency when going from south to north. Data from island of Krk fall to the position expected by this pattern.

apolipoprotein E; polymorphis; the island of Krk; population genetics; anthropology

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