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. 2010 Aug;211(2):526-30.
doi: 10.1016/j.atherosclerosis.2010.03.021. Epub 2010 Apr 20.

Association of Lp-PLA(2) activity with allele-specific Lp(a) levels in a bi-ethnic population

Byambaa Enkhmaa  1 , Erdembileg Anuurad, Wei Zhang, Thomas A Pearson, Lars Berglund
Affiliations

Association of Lp-PLA(2) activity with allele-specific Lp(a) levels in a bi-ethnic population

Byambaa Enkhmaa et al. Atherosclerosis. 2010 Aug.

Abstract

Objectives: Lipoprotein-associated phospholipase A(2) (Lp-PLA(2)) and lipoprotein(a) [Lp(a)] have been implicated as cardiovascular disease risk factors, and are differentially regulated across ethnicity. We investigated the association between Lp-PLA(2) activity and allele-specific apolipoprotein(a) [apo(a)] levels in a bi-ethnic population.

Methods: Lp-PLA(2) activity, Lp(a) and allele-specific apo(a) levels were determined in 224 African Americans and 336 Caucasians.

Results: Lp-PLA(2) activity level was higher among Caucasians compared to African Americans (173 + or - 41 nmol/min/ml vs. 141 + or - 39 nmol/min/ml, P<0.001), and positively associated with Lp(a), total and LDL cholesterol, triglyceride, apolipoprotein B-100, and negatively with HDL cholesterol levels in both ethnic groups. The association between Lp-PLA(2) activity and Lp(a) was stronger among African Americans compared to Caucasians (R=0.238, beta(1)=3.48, vs. R=0.111, beta(1)=1.93, respectively). The Lp-PLA(2) activity level was significantly associated with allele-specific apo(a) levels for smaller (<26 K4 repeats) apo(a) sizes in both ethnic groups (P=0.015 for African Americans, P=0.038 for Caucasians). In contrast, for larger (>26 K4 repeats) apo(a) sizes, high Lp-PLA(2) activity levels were associated with higher allele-specific apo(a) levels in African Americans (P=0.009), but not in Caucasians.

Conclusion: The association between Lp-PLA(2) activity and allele-specific apo(a) levels differs across African American-Caucasian ethnicity.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Distribution of plasma Lp(a) (A) and Lp-PLA2 activity (B) levels across ethnicity. Data represent median and interquartile ranges.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Correlations of Lp-PLA2 activity with plasma Lp(a) levels across ethnicity. Values for Lp-PLA2 were logarithmically transformed, and values for Lp(a) were square root transformed before analysis. The transformed values are shown in the graph.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Association between Lp-PLA2 activity and allele-specific apo(a) levels for larger (>26 K4 repeats) apo(a) sizes across ethnicity. Subjects with larger (>26 K4) apo(a) sizes were dichotomized into 2 groups using respective median Lp-PLA2 activity levels (170.9 nmol/min/ml for Caucasians and 139.6 nmol/min/ml for African Americans). Square root transformed allele-specific apo(a) levels and logarithmically transformed Lp-PLA2 activity levels were used for statistical analysis. Data are expressed as means ± SE. * P < 0.001
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