Differences in the association of PAI-1 activity with the metabolic syndrome between African and Caucasian women

Background and aims: The association between PAI-1(act) and markers of the metabolic syndrome is well established in Caucasian populations, but data oh African subjects is lacking. The aim of this study was to investigate possible differences between the association of PAI-1(act) and markers of the metabolic syndrome in Caucasian and African women. Methods and results: Cross-sectional data were collected from 95 African and 114 Caucasian women in the Potchefstroom district of the North West Province, South Africa. Plasma PAI-1(act) was almost twice as high in Caucasians compared to Africans (10.2 versus 5.2 U/mL, p < 0.001). Correlations between markers of the metabolic syndrome and PAI-1(act) were remarkably stronger in Caucasians than in Africans. In multivariate regression analyses 56% of the variance of PAI-1(act) could be explained by metabolic syndrome variables in the Caucasian group compared to 12% in the African women. Waist circumference was the strongest independent predictor of PAI-1(act) in both groups. Conclusion: This study showed tower PAI-1(act) in African than in Caucasian women, along with less associations of PAI-1(act) with markers of the metabolic syndrome in the African than in the Caucasian women. The role of PAI-1(act) in the metabolic syndrome may be less prominent in Africans than in Caucasians. (c) 2006 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.