Correlation between Polymorphism of the Genes for Transferrin and Angiotensin-Converting Enzyme and Antioxidant Activity of Blood Plasma

In 75 male and 46 female subjects of an urban population (93% Russians) and in 38 males and 40 females of a rural population (87% Russians), the antioxidant activity (AOA) of blood plasma was determined from the plasma ability to reduce the yield of products interacting with thiobarbituric acid in the model lecithin–Fe²⁺ ion system. In the urban population, the loci TF(AvaI in exon5) and ACE (I/D polymorphism of the Alu repeat in intron16) were studied in 130 and 141 subjects, respectively. Of them, 102 and 111 subjects, respectively, were examined for AOA. In the rural population, the corresponding sample sizes were 75 and 76 (73 and 74 subjects were examined for AOA). The polymorphic loci of the urban and rural populations did not differ in the allele frequencies. In both populations Hardy–Weinberg and gametic equilibria were observed. The contributions of the TF and ACE genes to AOA variation in the combined sample from the urban and rural populations were 0.6 and 0.5%, respectively.