FRIDAY, May 7 (HealthDay News) -- New genetic findings support the notion that elevated triglyceride levels have a causal association with coronary heart disease, according to a study in the May 8 issue of The Lancet.
Nadeem Sarwar, Ph.D., of the University of Cambridge in the United Kingdom, and colleagues assessed the presence of a triglyceride-level related genetic polymorphism, as well as elevated triglyceride levels in a large population of patients with and without cardiovascular disease.
The researchers found the abnormal allele APOA5 −1131T>C (referred to as the C allele), in 8 percent of the population; for every copy of the allele an individual possessed, triglyceride levels rose 16 percent. Presence of the C allele was also associated with potentially confounding factors that included modest decreases in high-density lipoprotein cholesterol, minor increases in apolipoprotein B, and significant increases in very-low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. The hazard ratio for coronary heart disease was 1.10 for every 16 percent elevation in triglycerides.
"These findings encourage further study of interventions that target triglyceride-mediated pathways. Because preliminary studies have suggested that responses to fibrates and statins might vary by APOA5 −1131T>C status, our data reinforce the need for more powerful such studies," the authors write.
Novartis provided funding for the study. One co-author disclosed financial ties to pharmaceutical companies including Novartis, and another co-author disclosed ties to other pharmaceutical companies.
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