The APOA1/C3/A4/A5 cluster and markers of allostatic load in the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study

Background and aimsThe APOA1/C3/A4/A5 cluster encodes key regulators of plasma lipids. Interactions between dietary factors and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in the cluster have been reported. Allostatic load, or physiological dysregulation in response to stress, has been implicated in shaping health disparities in ethnic groups. We aimed to determine the association between polymorphisms in the APOA1/C3/A4/A5 cluster with allostatic load parameters, alone, and in interaction with dietary fat intake in Puerto Ricans adults.Methods and resultsData on demographic and anthropometric measures, lifestyle behaviors, and medication use, as well as blood and urine samples for biomarker analysis, were obtained from participants of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study (n = 821, age 45-75 y). The 12 polymorphisms analyzed were not associated with allostatic load parameters. Significant interactions were observed between dietary fat intake and APOA1 −75 in association with waist circumference (WC), (P = 0.005), APOC3 −640 with diastolic blood pressure (DBP), (P = 0.003), and APOA4 N147S and APOA5 S19W with systolic blood pressure (SBP), (P = 0.001 and P = 0.002, respectively). Puerto Ricans homozygous for the common allele of APOA1 −75, APOA4 N147S and APOA5 S19W had lower WC and SBP when consuming <31% of total fat from energy, than participants with the minor allele. Participants heterozygous for APOC3 −640 had lower DBP at total fat intake ≥31% from energy.ConclusionSNPs in APOA1/C3/A4/A5, as modulated by dietary fat intake, appear to influence allostatic load parameters in Puerto Ricans.