Objective:

To examine whether the polymorphisms of the IL6, TNFA and IL10 genes represent a risk marker for acute myocardial infarction (AMI) and to analyze their correlation with risk factors, age of occurrence and type of AMI.

Method:

Association study that included 310 unrelated Venezuelan individuals, grouped in 190 patients with AMI and 120 controls with or without cardiovascular risk factors. The IL6-174 G/C (rs1800795), TNFA -308 G/A (rs1800629), and IL10-1082 A/G (rs1800896), -819 C/T (rs1800871) and -592 C/A (rs1800872) polymorphisms were determined using the polymerase chain reaction technique with sequence-specific primers.

Results:

Comparison of genotypic and allelic frequencies, using adjusted logistic regression analysis for risk factors, showed a significantly increased frequency of the genotype combination G/G-A/A of TNFA-308 G/A (odds ratio [OR]: 3.8; p = 0.00007), GG/-C/C of IL6-174 G/C (OR: 2.3; p = 0.009), A/G-G/G of IL10-1082 A/G (OR: 3.8; p = 0.00001) and the GCC haplotype of IL10 (OR: 3.71; p = 0.0053) in infarcted patients compared to controls. Interactions between the IL10-1082 A/G and TNFA-308 G/A polymorphisms and hypertension were observed.

Conclusions:

The association of the variants of the TNFA, IL6 and IL10 genes with AMI suggest that the imbalance in the production of cytokines promotes an exacerbated inflammatory process, supporting the fundamental role of inflammation in all stages of the atherosclerotic process.

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