M. Ghattas et al. / Journal of Biochemical and Pharmacological Research, Vol. 1 (3): xx-xx, September 2013 ISSN 2168-8761 print/ISSN 2168-877X online ~ 1 ~ http://www.researchpub.org/journal/jbpr/jbpr.html Abstract: Essential hypertension is thought to be a polygenic and multifactorial disease. Apolipoprotein CIII (Apo CIII) gene has been identified as a candidate region for hyperlipidemia and atherosclerosis. The current study tested the hypothesis that Apo CIII 3238 C/G gene polymorphism may affect oxidized Low Density Lipoprotein (oxLDL) level and increase the susceptibility to essential hypertension. A total of 120 hypertensive patients and 130 aged and sex matched controls were selected from North Sinai area. All subjects are Egyptians and had the same ethnicity. Genotyping of the Apo CIII 3238C/G was performed by polymerase chain reaction restriction fragment length polymorphism. Lipid profile and serum oxLDL were determined. The minor G allele of Apo CIII 3238C/G gene polymorphism was more frequent in hypertensive patients than in the controls (odds ratio [OR] = 2.09, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.16-3.78, p = 0.013). The CG genotype carriers were associated with higher levels of triglycerides and oxLDL in patients and control subjects. No significant difference was observed in other lipid parameters. However, the HDL levels were higher in CG genotype carriers compared to carriers of CC genotype. The results of the present study show that the Apo CIII 3238C/G single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) is associated with susceptibility to essential hypertension and provide the first evidence that apo CIII 3238C/G affecting serum oxLDL. Therefore, this study bridges genetic susceptibility to essential hypertension with atherogenecity and the potential long-term risk of cardiovascular diseases. __________________________________________ a Department of Medical Biochemistry, Faculty of Medicine, Suez Canal University, Ismailia41622, Egypt b Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy and Pharmaceutical industries, Sinai University, North Sinai45511, Egypt c Department of Biochemistry, Faculty of Pharmacy, Suez Canal University, Ismailia41622, Egypt *Corresponding author. E-mail: dinawahadan@yahoo.com; Fax: +20 643230741 (Received April 4, 2013; Revised April 6, 2013; Accepted April 8, 2013; Published online April 12, 2013) Keywords: apo CIII, essential hypertension, oxLDL, single nucleotide polymorphism 1. Introduction ssential hypertension (EH) is an important risk factor for cardiovascular diseases. It accounts for 95% of all cases of hypertension [1]. In Egypt, the prevalence rate of hypertension was 26.3%. Additionally, the disease is poorly managed in Egyptians, only 8% of hypertensive Egyptians have their blood pressure controlled [2]. EH is thought to be a polygenic and multifactorial disease, resulting from the interaction between genetic and environmental factors [3]. Oxidative stress has been implicated in the pathogenesis of hypertension; and an elevated level of oxidized low-density lipoprotein in hypertensive patients is one of the main causes to the development of atherosclerosis and its complications [4]. The genetic basis of hypertension is complex, and examination of the functional consequences of genetic variants is still challenging [5]. Apolipoprotein C III (Apo C III), a 79-amino-acid protein synthesized in the liver and in the intestine [6], inhibits the hydrolysis of triglyceride (TG)-rich particles by lipoprotein lipase and causes delayed clearance of TG-rich lipoproteins from plasma [7]. Apo CIII gene, mapped to chromosome 11q23.3, has been identified as a candidate region for hyperlipidemia, in particular, for hypertriglyceridemia and atherosclerosis [8]. Apo CIII 3238 C/G gene polymorphism (rs5128) in the 3'-untranslated region is associated with raised Apo CIII levels [9]. Moreover, because Apo CIII has direct pro-inflammatory and atherogenic effects on vascular cells [10], we tested the hypothesis that Apo CIII 3238 C/G gene polymorphism affects oxLDL level and increase the susceptibility to EH. 2. Materials and methods 2.1. Subjects Research Article Apolipoprotein CIII3238C/G Gene Polymorphism Influences Oxidized Low-Density Lipoprotein with a Risk of Essential Hypertension Maivel Ghattas a , Heba Badawy b , Noha Mesbah c , Dina Abo-Elmatty c,* E