Journal of Rhinology  2003;10(1, 2):23-26

Lack of Association between an Insertion/Deletion Polymorphism of the Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme Gene and Allergic Rhinitis in a Korean Population.

Jae Hoon LEE 1 ; Tae Wook CHOI ; Sung Weon YOON ; Jeong Joong KIM

Affiliations

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Keywords

Allergic rhinitis; Angiotensin -converting enzyme gene; Polymorphism; Korean population

Country

Republic of Korea

Language

English

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES: Angiotensin -converting enzyme (ACE) inactivates bradykinin, substance P, and neurokinin A, which are thought to play important roles in the pathogenesis of inflammatory diseases. An insertion/deletion (I/D) poly - morphism in the ACE gene was reported to be associated with atopy in a Czech population. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Using the polymerase chain reaction, we investigated the frequencies of the genotypes and alleles of the ACE gene in 137 patients with allergic rhinitis and 498 healthy control subjects. RESULTS: There was no difference in the frequencies of the genotypes in the controls and patients with allergic rhinitis (p>0.05). The D allele was more frequent in patients with allergic rhinitis, but the difference was not statistically significant (p>0.05). CONCLUSION: Our results indicate that I/D polymorphism in the ACE gene is not related to susceptibility to allergic rhinitis in the Korean population.