ABSTRACT
The initial step in atherosclerosis is the adhesion of leukocytes to activated endothelial cells mediated by intercellular adhesion molecule-1 [ICAM-1]. This study aimed to investigate the association of K469E polymorphism of the ICAM-1 gene and soluble ICAM-1 [sICAM-1] serum level with coronary heart disease [HD] in Egyptian subjects. Using a case-control design, we studied 100 patients with CHD, including 73 patients with acute myocardial infarction [MI] and 27 with unstable angina [UA]. The control groups consisted of 50 healthy subjects with normal left ventricular function. All participants were genotyped for the ICAM-1 polymorphism by the polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism [PCR-RFLP] method. Serum sICAM-1 was measured by enzyme-linked immunoassay [ELISA]. In CHD patients, the frequencies of K genotype [KK and EK] were significantly higher when compared to controls [P<.001] and were associated with an increased risk of disease development [OR=3.8, 95% CI: 1.7 to 8.5; P=.001]. K genotype frequencies in patients with MI showed no significant difference when compared to patients with UA [P=.121]. Serum sICAM-1 levels were comparable between CHD patients and controls [P=.37] and between MI and UA patients [P=.23]. There were no significant differences in sICAM-1 levels than women [P=.004]. ICAM-1 gene polymorphism in codon 469 is associated with a risk for CHD development in Egyptian subjects. Serum sICAM-1 is not influenced by this polymorphism and is not necessarily elevated in CHD