Affiliations: Department of Medicine, University of Hong Kong, Hong
Kong, China | Department of Physiology, Chinese University of Hong
Kong, Hong Kong, China | Department of Community Medicine, University of Hong
Kong, Hong Kong, China
Note: [] Corresponding author: Prof. Bernard M.Y. Cheung, Department of
Clinical Pharmacology, Division of Medical Sciences, University of Birmingham,
United Kingdom. Tel.: +44 121 4146874; Fax: +44 121 4141355; E-mail:
b.cheung@bham.ac.uk
Abstract: Fibrinogen, an acute phase protein, is an important inflammatory
marker that is associated with cardiovascular diseases. We studied the
association of three common human fibrinogen-β gene
(FGB) variants, −455G>A, −249C>T,
and −148C>T with glycemic parameters in
265 non-diabetic Hong Kong Chinese subjects. Both FGB variants,
−455G>A and −148C>T were in complete linkage
disequilibrium and were associated with higher levels of plasma fibrinogen and
2-h glucose after a 75-g oral glucose load (p<0.01). Carriers
of FGB AC-haplotype, comprising the two nucleotide variants at positions
−455 and −249, had higher fibrinogen
level (2.64 ± 0.65 vs 2.42 ± 0.52
g/L, p=0.002) and 2-h glucose after a 75-g oral glucose
load (5.87 ± 1.14 vs 5.47 ± 1.22 g/L,
p=0.006). The associations were significant in men, but not
women. In stepwise multiple regression analysis, AC-haplotype was independently
associated with plasma fibrinogen level and 2-h glucose (p=0.002 and 0.010 respectively).
This suggests that fibrinogen may play a role in
the development of impaired glucose tolerance.
