APOE Gene Variation's Impact on Cardiovascular Health: A Case-Control Study

Chronic venous insufficiency (CVI) is a common medical condition characterized by impaired functioning of the venous system in the lower extremities. It leads to various symptoms, including varicose veins, leg edema, and skin pigmentation. It is believed that a combination of genetic and environmental factors affect the development of CVI. The APOE gene is of particular interest in this context, as it plays a role in lipid metabolism and inflammation. The epsilon 4 allele (rs429358) has been associated with an increased risk of Alzheimer's disease, while the epsilon 2 allele (rs7412) has shown a protective effect against Alzheimer's disease but a strong association with cardiovascular inflammation. This research aimed to investigate the presence of APOE gene variants in individuals with chronic venous insufficiency disease and validate the relationship between this gene and cardiovascular diseases. The study analyzed the expression of APOE gene variants in varicose vein tissue samples from patients and a normal vein in the control group. The results indicated no significant expression of the epsilon 4 allele in either group. However, there was a significant decrease in the expression of the epsilon 2 allele in the patient group. Additionally, a negative correlation was observed between the two single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in vein tissue. The lower expression of the epsilon 2 allele in patients suggests a potentially reduced risk of cardiovascular disease in these individuals. Consequently, there appears to be a weaker association between the expression of the APOE gene epsilon 2 allele and cardiovascular diseases.