Elsevier

Life Sciences

Volume 73, Issue 20, 3 October 2003, Pages 2625-2630
Life Sciences

Relationship between angiotensin-converting enzyme ID polymorphism and VO2max of Chinese males

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0024-3205(03)00608-8Get rights and content

Abstract

Several studies have shown that the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) I allele is associated with enhanced physical performance. We investigated whether this phenomenon is observed in a cohort of 67 Chinese men in Singapore. Angiotensin-converting enzyme ID polymorphism was typed with PCR method and maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) of the DD, ID, and II genotypes was compared. Analysis of covariance revealed that VO2max was significantly higher (p<0.05) for the DD genotype (57.86 ± 3.5 ml.kg.−1min−1) versus the ID (50.58 ± 1.80 ml.kg.−1min−1) or II (50.48 ± 1.58 ml.kg.−1 min−1) genotype. Our findings suggest that the ACE DD genotype in young adult Chinese males is associated with higher levels of VO2max.

Introduction

Cardiovascular performance plays an important role in athletic success (Gayagay et al., 1998). The candidate genes that maybe involved in cardiac growth and function are components of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS). Angiotensin II, a key element of the RAS, exhibits a trophic effect on heart muscle cells and is an important arterial constrictor (Rosendorff, 1996).

It is known that there is a 287-bp insertion (I)/deletion (D) polymorphism in intron 16 of the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) gene that is prevalent and accountable for the varying serum and tissue ACE levels. Subjects that exhibit the highest levels of serum ACE are those of the DD genotype, with the lowest levels being exhibited by the II genotype. This polymorphism is easily detected by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) techniques (Rigat et al., 1992).

As ACE is involved in the metabolism of substances that affect vascular remodelling, it may account for the cardio respiratory fitness of individuals and for the differences among individuals in response to physical training. Maximal oxygen uptake (VO2max) is traditionally recognized as the gold standard laboratory measure of cardio respiratory fitness, with increasing levels accompanying endurance training and high levels being a pre-requisite for success in endurance events (Bassett and Howley, 2000). The ACE I allele has been associated with higher VO2max levels in post-menopausal women (Hagberg et al., 1998) and improved endurance performance in army recruits (Montgomery et al., 1998). Furthermore, an increased frequency of the ACE I allele has been reported in high altitude mountaineers (Montgomery et al., 1998) and Olympic-standard distance runners (Myerson et al., 1999) and rowers (Gayagay et al., 1998) in comparison to non-athlete controls. In contrast, other studies have failed to find a relationship between ACE I allele and VO2max (Rankinen et al., 2000a) or elite athlete status (Taylor et al., 1999). Furthermore, Rankinen et al. (2000b) reported that Caucasian offspring from the HERITAGE Family Study with the DD genotype showed greater gains in VO2max after a 20-week endurance-training programme. At present, the relationship between ACE genotype and VO2max is unclear and requires further investigation.

Therefore, we investigated the relationship between ACE ID polymorphism and VO2max of Chinese males in Singapore by comparing the VO2max of DD, ID, and II genotypes.

Section snippets

Subjects

Sixty-seven students from National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University volunteered for the study. They were healthy non-smoking Chinese males with prior exercise/military training. Age, height, body weight, and body mass index (BMI) were 23.21 ± 0.29 years (mean ± SEM), 1.72 ± 0.01 m, 65.62 ± 0.98 kg and 22.01 ± 0.26 kg/m2, respectively. Written informed consent was obtained from each volunteer before the study, which was undertaken with ethics committee approval.

Procedures

Venous

Results and discussion

The frequency distribution of ACE genotypes in the 67 Chinese males in the present study was: DD (13.4%, n = 9), ID (40.3%, n = 27), II (46.3%, n = 31). Lee (1994) reported a similar distribution for ACE genotypes amongst Chinese males in Singapore: DD (9.5%), ID (40.7%), II (49.7%). Age, height, body weight and BMI in our study population, do not differ significantly amongst the three ACE genotype groups.

The distribution of VO2max for subjects for each of the three ACE genotype categories is

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