9p21 locus rs10757278 is associated with advanced carotid atherosclerosis in a gender-specific manner.

Single nucleotide polymorphisms from the chromosome locus 9p21 are reported to carry a risk for various cardiovascular diseases. One of the lead single nucleotide polymorphisms, rs10757278, was mostly investigated in association with coronary artery disease but rarely with carotid atherosclerosis. In this study, we aimed to analyze the association of rs10757278 A/G polymorphism with carotid plaque presence in advanced carotid atherosclerosis. The study included 803 participants, 486 patients with high-grade stenosis (>70%) who were undergoing carotid endarterectomy and 317 controls from Serbian population. Genotypes were determined using the real-time polymerase chain reaction. According to the recessive model of inheritance, GG genotype was significantly and independently associated with carotid plaque in females only (odds ratio 2.42, CI = 1.20-4.90, P = 0.013). Odds ratio was adjusted for age, body mass index, hypertension, TC, LDLC, HDLC and TG, and P value was corrected for multiple comparisons. Our preliminary findings suggest a gender-specific association of rs10757278 polymorphism with carotid plaque. Further studies on larger sample and in genetically and environmentally similar populations are needed.