Interplay analysis of lead exposure with key cardiovascular gene polymorphisms on blood pressure in a cross-sectional study of occupational workers

An increasing number of studies have shown that lead is an important cardiovascular risk factor, but the impact of cardiovascular related gene polymorphisms on lead induced cardiovascular diseases is still unclear. To assess the interaction of lead exposure and related key cardiovascular regulating gene polymorphisms on blood pressure traits, three single-nucleotide polymorphisms including NOTCH1 rs3124591, Cerebral cavernous malformations 3 (CCM3) rs3804610 and Vascular endothelial growth factor receptor type 2 (VEGFR2) rs2305948 were selected and genotyped using improved multiplex ligase detection reaction method in 568 lead exposure workers in South China. General characteristics, blood lead and biochemical parameters including glucose, lipid profile and creatinine were also collected according to standard protocols. Regression analysis was used to evaluate the association of blood pressure with lead exposure, polymorphisms and their interaction. This study displayed that CCM3 rs3804610 had a positive interaction with lead and VEGFR2 rs2305948 had a negative interaction with lead. Specifcally, compared with the wild-type population, the blood lead of the genotype population carrying the risk allele increased by 1 µg/dL, systolic blood pressure increased by 0.53 mmHg (p < 0.01) and diastolic blood pressure increased by 0.34 mmHg (p < 0.05) for CCM3 rs3804610, and systolic blood pressure decreased by 0.28 mmHg (p < 0.05) and diastolic blood pressure decreased by 0.22 mmHg (p < 0.05) for VEGFR2 rs2305948. Thus our findings showed that the interaction between CCM3 rs3804610 and VEGFR2 rs2305948 and lead exposure were associated with blood pressure and may provide guidance for future research on hypertension prevention and personalized clinical treatment in lead exposed populations.